UPDATE: Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic™ – Available now

Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic™ arrived from the printer TODAY. Pre-orders have already started shipping out. I forgot how cool Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic™ is with its different approach to magic, and the ways ordinary people caught in the Great Cataclysm discover, learn and use magic and ley lines. See how survivors deal with the sudden appearance of demons, monsters and magic. Magic that appears along the Blue Zones (ley lines) and magic that is suddenly being cast by ordinary people – children and teenagers in particular. The guy who wrote this book did a pretty good job. Oh wait, that was me. lol. Taking orders and shipping right now.

UPDATE: Chaos Earth® Resurrection™ sourcebook – spring release

I spoke with artist Chuck Walton and he expects to have the finished Chaos Earth® Resurrection cover to me by Monday, then he’ll start on the interior artwork. I think Amy Ashbaugh will be contributing to this book too. An April release, with Chaos Earth® First Responders by Jason Richards coming in the spring or summer.

UPDATE: Bizantium and the Northern Islands™ – Getting close

So close now, I can taste it. I think I have only two or three Bizantium manuscript files left. Wayne is editing away. Typesetting and layout will be starting any day now. Absolutely goes to the printer next week. Awesome book. Lost secrets, lost treasures, ancient gods, sea serpents, monsters, animals, political intrigue, updated stats and information on key places, the Great Ice Shelf and my new favorite villain, the Iceborn — you will love hating them. 192 pages coming your way next month. See the full description elsewhere in this Update.

UPDATE: The Rifter® #69 – will probably ship at the same time as Bizantium in March

The Rifter® #69 is full of all kinds of crunchy goodness. And I mean full with material for Rifts®, Chaos Earth®, Heroes Unlimited™, After the Bomb®, G.M. tips and more. The book is in final production. All the artwork has been assigned and some of it is already finished and in our hands. See the full description elsewhere in this Update.

UPDATE: The Rifter® #70 and beyond .

Artist Chuck Walton tells me he expects to be done with this cover next week. And we expect to dive into production of The Rifter® #70 in short order for an end of April release.

UPDATE: Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines™ Sourcebook

It’s coming, it’s coming. In fact, we’re working on many ideas for Robotech® products this year. Keep your eyes peeled.

UPDATE: Robotech® RPG Tactics™

We need to make EVERYBODY aware of Robotech® RPG Tactics™, so please spread the word, and talk the game up, because while we’ve been working on getting Wave One shipped and Wave Two advanced into manufacturing, we have been developing plans for all kinds of future releases. Everything from game pieces to broaden the scope of battles (like tanks, trucks, the Comanchero Helicopter, other aircraft, etc.) to scenario books and advanced rules and new battle-fronts. As you know, Robotech® RPG Tactics™(RRT) – which starts with the Macross mecha and setting – is NOW AVAILABLE in stores across the USA and Canada (and soon in Europe and Australia). But we have big plans for all eras of Robotech® and ideas that have NEVER been done! (And you are going to love.) If you can’t find Robotech® RPG Tactics™ on the store shelf, make sure the manager and/or owner of the store knows you want the product and that he can get it right now from his distributor!

Robotech® fans, the RRT rules capture the very essence, speed and combat action of the Macross TV series. Collectors may want this gorgeous game just to have in their collections, because it is beautiful and contains a wealth of art and images never before offered. Take a look and spread the word. Oh, and for those of you who would like to see the rules first, you can purchase the full color Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook directly from Palladium Books. We also intend to make the rules available online.

Join the thousands of people who are already building, painting and playing right now. Robotech® RPG Tactics™ games and tournaments are already starting to pop up at conventions and more will be coming.

The FREE Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Color Guide Resource is available on DriveThruRPG.com right now, and has been very well received. Please spread the word about the Color Guide and an ever increasing number of comprehensive building instructions.

UPDATE: Shipping to Overseas Kickstarter Backers

RRT Europe!

The Robotech® RPG Tactics™ rewards to our backers in Europe have arrived in port and should reach our UK shipper in about 10 days. It still has to clear Customs and get shipped to the folks mailing out product across Europe. There is still time for some last minute address corrections, if necessary, so PLEASE MAKE SURE WE HAVE YOUR CURRENT and CORRECT MAILING ADDRESS.

Australian and all other Overseas Backers, we must have any address change by February 28!

The Robotech® RPG Tactics™ rewards to our backers in Australia should be arriving in port in about two weeks. Our Australian shipper has requested we get them all current addresses by Monday, March 2 – so they can start prepping for the big mailing as soon as product reaches their doorstep. WE want that too. As do you.

If you have MOVED since the Kickstarter was funded, PLEASE MAKE SURE Palladium Books has your CURRENT address as soon as possible. That means NOW (this weekend).

Please check BackerKithttp://robotech-rpg-tacticstm.backerkit.com and make sure your address is correct. If anything does not look right, please send us your address in a Kickstarter message or via email at kickstarter@palladiumbooks.com or call the Palladium office at 734-721-2903 with your new information.

To make sure we see it, make the subject “Address Change.” TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!!! Do not risk your reward going to the wrong address because YOU failed to update your address. If your rewards go to the wrong address they might be lost and unreplaceable.

NOTE: Palladium Books will NOT be liable for lost goods if you have moved and did not tell us in time. MOREOVER, you will be required to pay the additional shipping to redirect the package to the correct address. Which, if coming directly from the USA, will be considerable ($60-$120 for just Battle Cry) and you will be charged any applicable VAT, duty and other fees. DON’T LET THAT HAPPEN! Please save yourself the time and money and make sure your address is correct right NOW. Thank you very, very much.

UPDATE: Podcast interview with Kevin Siembieda on ThisWeekInGeek.net

Interviewer Mike Dodd let us know he could not get the interview up last weekend, but it will appear this Saturday, February 28, 2015. It was very fun to do, and I think many of you will enjoy it, so check it out. Our conversation touched on the gaming industry in the 1980s and 1990s, TMNT®, Robotech®, Rifts® and getting started in the business.

Can hardly wait. Palladium will be there selling product and running demos. Chat with Kevin Siembieda, Wayne Smith and Jeff Burke, and play in the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Tournament. We hope to see many of you there. http://www.adepticon.org

Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Tournament – Battle for Macross City – It’s big. It’s fun. There are prizes. Register now to make sure you get to play. We’ve been told the more people who register, the bigger the event will become.

This tournament will be 300 points and have several games with fantastic scenarios.

Each table shall be a beautiful custom creation, for a unique gaming experience.

Five different awards will ensure that no matter what aspect of the hobby you are most interested in, there is an award that will be for you.

This tourney is for all levels of players, from first time tournament and convention attendees to the seasoned gamer.

Experience first-hand the fun, fast-paced game of Robotech® RPG Tactics™.

UPDATE: PenguiCon – April 24, 25 & 26, 2015 – Southfield, Michigan

Palladium has added PenguiCon to its convention schedule – April. We’ll be there selling Robotech® RPG Tactics™, our latest book releases and other select RPG titles. Chuck Walton will be present selling original art and prints too. And since the Palladium warehouse is only 30 minutes away, tell us your special wants, and we can have them there later that evening or the next day. Cool. Hope to see some of you there.

UPDATE: DriveThruRPG.com – FREE Robotech® RPG Tactics™ color guides, detailed, comprehensive RRT building instructions, The Rifter® #60 and more are available now

Palladium continues to provide FREE support to Robotech® RPG Tactics™ with supplemental material. So far that includes some game cards, the massive mecha painting/color design templates (more than 100 images in color and black and white – and an awesome resource for any Robotech fan), and now some detailed assembly instructions, with MUCH more coming. There is much more to come for Robotech® RPG Tactics™ and other Palladium game lines.

The Rifter® #60 has also been added to titles available. Much, much more is coming in the weeks ahead for Robotech® and other Palladium game lines. We plan to add a bunch of new material to DriveThruRPG.com over the next several weeks, so keep an eye on it. DriveThruRPG.com already offers 90+ Palladium Books titles available as PDFs with more to be made available soon. They currently include the Coalition Wars®/Siege on Tolkeen™ series, Splicers® RPG, The Rifter® issues #1-60 (with more being added soon), and first edition rules of the Rifts® RPG, Beyond the Supernatural™ RPG, Heroes Unlimited™ RPG, The Palladium Fantasy RPG®, and related 1st edition sourcebooks for each. And more! Like what? Like Fantasy Paper Miniatures and Game Master Kits for digital download. They are available only as PDF files and were designed special to help you run your games and build campaigns. There are also sneak previews of books and other good stuff. Check it out! And let other gamers know they are available too. We’ll be making more available on DriveThruRPG.com in the weeks and months to come, so take a look on a regular basis.

UPDATE: 2015 Palladium Open House (POH) – May 15-17, 2015 – at the Palladium warehouse in Westland, Michigan

Like I said last week, I’m pulling out all the stops for the Palladium Open House. There will be more panel talks, lots of games (many run by Palladium creators), there will be one-of-a-kind art items, original artwork (including some from the original Robotech® RPG and Rifts®), and I’m continuing to dig through my archives for offerings of rare limited editions, out of print Robotech® and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles® books – some signed by the late, great Erick Wujcik – truly unique collectibles that you seldom (if ever) see, new products we are test marketing, a Rifts® 25th Anniversary party, live auction and more!

Meet 30+ Palladium Creators, get autographs and enjoy gaming galore and lots of fun and memories to make. I’m hoping for a record turn out this Open House. Come on down even if it’s for one day to meet and get autographs from 30+ awesome artists, writers and Palladium madmen (and women).

It is going to be epic! And hopefully not the last, but as we finalize our plans for the 2015 POH we are more and more convinced this may really be the last Open House. So if you can attend – especially if you live in the area – join us for a party-like gaming extravaganza. Please order your POH tickets as soon as possible because we need to know how many games and events it will take to keep all of you gaming and busy all the time!

Please “reserve” your hotel rooms NOW. It helps Palladium immensely. Likewise, please order your admissions sooner than later so we know how many gaming events to schedule.

● TIME SENSITIVE: Reserve your rooms soon for the 2015 Open House Hotel! Your credit card will NOT be charged until May, so there is no reason not to play it safe and reserve your room. Note: Hotels within a 20 mile area WILL BE BOOKED due to a sporting event the same weekend. You need to RESERVE YOUR ROOM TODAY or the next available hotel may be 20+ miles away. Seriously!

Comfort Inn

40455 Ann Arbor RoadPlymouth, MI 48170Phone: 734-455-8100

Group Code: Palladium Books – you MUST request the Group Code “Palladium Books” at the time of booking to ensure the correct rate will be quoted and billed to you.

Dates of the 2015 Palladium Open House (POH): May 15-17 (May 14 is VIP Thursday), 2015. $109.00 (plus tax) per night for two queen beds or one king with a sofa that has a pull-out sleeper. ALL rooms have a microwave & fridge, and FREE high-speed wired/wireless Internet. Call 734-455-8100 to make your reservation. The hotel does NOT charge your credit card until a few days before the event and you can cancel up to May 10, 2015. So there is no reason to wait.

For more info and to purchase tickets to the Palladium Open House, click here.

GAME MASTERS NEEDED for the Palladium Open House – Submit your games NOW

We want to post a schedule of POH events as soon as we can. To do that we need descriptions from ALL Game Masters in the next week or two. Game Master POH Rewards: Run 3+ games and get our new G.M. T-shirt FREE (unveiled for the first time at the POH) and a 30% discount on Palladium’s RPG books, T-shirts and most other items (sorry, excludes original art, limited editions, art prints, auction items and Robotech® RPG Tactics). We need plenty of games to satisfy 300 gamers. Your help is appreciated and NEEDED. Help! Contact us by telephone (734-721-2903) or by email at palladium-gm@palladiumbooks.com.

GAME MASTERS NEEDED for Gen Con Indy – MUST have your game descriptions by March 3, 2015

To get into the 2015 Gen Con Indy program book and Pre-Registration, we NEED your commitment and game descriptions by March 3, 2015. SOONER is better. Getting the games listed in the Gen Con Games Pre-Registration is vital to get the outstanding showing we saw at last year’s Gen Con. PLEASE get us ALL game information ASAP to make it into the online pre-reg.

Send your game descriptions in to the Palladium Megaversal Ambassadors pronto at ambassadors@palladiumbooks.com; or by telephone (734-721-2903). We are also looking for volunteers familiar with RRT and wargames to run demos of Robotech® RPG Tactics™ in the miniatures area of Gen Con.

Tell your local store if they are having problems getting Palladium product, to call us. We continue to hear from customers and store owners that they cannot get Palladium product from their distributor. That’s crazy because Palladium Books has 98% of its game titles in stock, in its warehouse, at all times! This is true of Robotech® RPG Tactics™, Rifts®, Dead Reign® and ALL of our games. If a distributor tells your local store we are out of stock, it’s baloney! Have your store contact Palladium Books (734-721-2903) and we’ll help them get our products one way or another.

Fan Favorite Stores

We’re going to be putting together a directory of “Fan Favorite Stores” that carry Palladium products. Stores that you, our fan base, know, love and who carry Palladium products. We want our customers to be able to find our games wherever they live. These must be stores that carry Palladium Books products (even if it’s a small selection or new releases) and willing to order more when customers request them.

Please post in this thread and list the store’s name, street address, telephone number, and website (if it has one). We’ll be creating a listing in alphabetical order by State or region and adding it to our website. That’s just one of many changes and features we’ll be making to the Palladium website in the coming weeks.

Final words this update .

Hey, just because we don’t mention a specific product, product line or project that you are looking forward to, does NOT mean something bad has happened or it isn’t coming out. It just means we were focusing and talking about different products and happenings in this particular Update. Please do not assume the worst. If I tried to cover everything cooking on every front, these Updates would be three times larger and I’d have to spend an entire day writing one instead of working on getting product out. Keep the faith, stay positive, and have a great weekend. Books are coming!

– Kevin Siembieda, Game Designer, Writer, Publisher

The FREE Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Color Guide Resource

The color guide in the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ rule book contains several classic paint schemes from the Robotech® universe, providing different visual options for every unit in the game. Ah, but what about those of you who want to create your own paint schemes? Use these PDFs available for FREE on DriveThruRPG.com as work sheets to create your paint schemes and unique designs on the computer before you go to paint the actual game pieces.

Each of the PDFs provided contains the templates created by artist Jeffrey Burke for the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook. They are in a digital format so that you can colorize and alter them using Photoshop, Paint, or almost any other graphics program to work out and test your original squadron designs. For your convenience, we included the color art as well as black and white “blank” versions of each unit for those of you who want to start from the ground up.

Test out your paint schemes, see how units look next to each other, and get a feel for how your army will look before you break out the paintbrushes. Enjoy.

Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook – Available now

The RRT tabletop rules laid out at your fingertips in full color splendor. Robotech® fans who don’t play Robotech® RPG Tactics™ may want this gorgeous, glossy color book just to have in their collection. Perhaps for the paint guide alone – because the guide, for the first time ever, anywhere, presents all the color schemes for Earth and Zentraedi mecha you see in the TV series (plus some variants). Note: This is the exact same rulebook that is included in the RRT main game box.

The tabletop rules – capture the speed and combat of the animated Robotech® TV series.

Battle scenarios to get started.

Comprehensive Index.

All your favorite Macross mecha.

The Valkyries and Destroids of Earth’s defenders.

The Battlepods of the Zentraedi invaders.

Timeline, basic history and mecha stats.

Applications for use in existing role-playing campaigns.

100+ color images in the Robotech® Mecha Painting Guide.

Gorgeous color artwork throughout.

Created by Palladium Books and Ninja Division. Written by Carmen Bellaire and David Freeman.

NEW! The Rifter® #69 – March – in final production

The Rifter® #69 is packed with exciting and fun material for Rifts®, Chaos Earth®, After the Bomb®, Dead Reign®, Heroes Unlimited™ and more!

Every issue of The Rifter® is an idea factory for players and Game Masters to generate new ideas and find new avenues of adventure. It provides useful, ready to go source material you can just drop into your ongoing games. A doorway to new possibilities and numerous Palladium role-playing worlds. And the many new characters, O.C.C.s, powers, magic, weapons, villains, monsters, adventures and ideas for one setting can be easily adapted to any Palladium setting. Every issue has material for Rifts® and at least 2-3 other Palladium game lines.

With 2015 being the 25th Anniversary of Rifts®, every issue of The Rifter® will feature a Rifts® inspired cover and contain at least one Rifts® article.

The Rifter® #69 – Winter, 2015:

Rifts®: Arenas of Atlantis by Will Erwin.

Rifts® Chaos Earth®: First Responders of New Mexico by Daniel Frederick.

Rise of Magic™ – Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook – Now shipping

We’ve all played “post” apocalyptic games. Now imagine playing as the apocalypse is happening. As the world you know is crumbling. As magic and monsters from myth become real and your world is reshaped by forces beyond your comprehension. That is the premise behind the Rifts® Chaos Earth® series. That YOU play through the Great Cataclysm as the apocalypse happens.

Rifts® Chaos Earth®: Rise of Magic™ is a key book in that continuing story (new books are coming this Spring and Summer). In Rise of Magic™, humans, particularly children, are discovering they can draw upon mystic energy and cast magic. The thing is, they don’t really know what they are doing. Magic is just part of the chaos and the impossible that is happening all around them. Meanwhile, others have found they can summon and control monsters and demons, while still others make pacts with supernatural beings to become witches and worse. And some have learned they can harness the magic to animate and command the dead. Madness and more chaos ensues. All of this only complicates things for NEMA, Earth’s defenders, as the line of distinction between “good guys” and “bad guys” begins to blur, and things go from bad to worse.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® RPG – Available now

The origins of Rifts® start here! It is a new beginning. But first everything that human civilization had become during the Golden Age of Science, more than eighty years in our future, must come to a crashing end. The Earth is in the process of being transformed into a place more alien than a thousand alien worlds. Ley Lines erupt with even more power and ambient energy than what is known on Rifts Earth 300 years later. Rifts – tears in space and time – appear along ley lines to unleash legions of aliens, monsters, dragons, supernatural horrors, and ancient gods of myth and legend in a mad symphony of chaos and transformation.

You play survivors or the heroes of NEMA. The men and women of the Northern Eagle Military Alliance equipped with their Chromium Guardsmen (Glitter Boys), Silver Eagles (SAMAS) and host of other robots and power armor to stand against a rising tide of enemies and alien invaders. They are humanity’s last and only hope to survive the apocalypse that will become known as the Great Cataclysm. These are the heroes you play in a world that can only be described as Chaos Earth.

Overview of the Great Cataclysm as it unfolds.

Introduction to NEMA and its weapons and resources.

11 different character classes, including robot pilots, the Para-Arcane, Demon and Witch Hunters, Chromium Guardsmen, Silver Eagles, and more.

Rifts® Book of Magic – Back in Print – NEEDED for Rise of Magic™ and the Chaos Earth® RPG setting

Rifts® Book of Magic is 352 pages of nothing but magic – 850+ spells, 370+ magic items, including Rune Weapons, Techno-Wizard items, Bio-Wizard Splugorth creations, and Iron Juggernauts, and more. That’s cover to cover spells and magic items and a few related odds and ends like Atlantean Tattoos and the Nazca Lines. Everything collected from the first 23 World Books, Sourcebooks 1-4, and Siege on Tolkeen 1-6 into one giant reference of magical goodness.

Optional rules & clarification on magic and more. Note: It is a vital reference for Rifts® Chaos Earth™, Rifts® Federation of Magic, the Rifts® China books and all Rifts® titles. Furthermore, spells and most magic items are easy to adapt to world settings like Palladium Fantasy® and Heroes Unlimited™. Don’t get caught without it.

The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive – Low Price – Free Gift

It only happens once a year – for a limited time – The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive. We want people to discover The Rifter® as a valuable resource, so we are offering the biggest selection of FREE gifts ever as an enticement. Gamers already familiar with The Rifter® always jump at this offer. That’s because, even when late, The Rifter® has been so consistently good, it is hard to say no to the Super-Subscription Drive.

The free gift is always a nice incentive, and this year the selection is truly unique and fun. I have dug through the Palladium archives to make a number of out of print titles and “special” items available. For us, gaming is all about friends and fun, so enjoy and have fun. Note: The early issues of The Rifter® are limited and available only while supplies last. Please keep the orders coming and enjoy.

Here are four reasons (and 7 gift choices) why this is the perfect time to try The Rifter® or renew your subscription:

1. Save $16 off retail and each issue is delivered right to your door.

3. Order during the Super-Subscription Drive to lock in your low, low subscription price for the next year.

4. The Rifter® has been outstanding and is the place to find regular source material for Beyond the Supernatural™, Palladium Fantasy®, Splicers®, and Heroes Unlimited™ and other settings. And future issues will have more playing and G.M. tips.

If you haven’t taken a look at The Rifter® lately (if ever), I suggest you try an issue. The Rifter® is an excellent source of ideas, characters, monsters, villains, powers, magic and adventures for your own game. Even articles designed for settings you don’t play are likely to offer ideas and material you can easily modify and incorporate into your campaign. In fact, drawing on concepts from outside the usual setting can spice up your game and keep players guessing. The Rifter® is a great tool for that. That’s the beauty of the Palladium Megaversal Game System; you can often take characters, gear and ideas from one world setting and drop them into ANY of the other settings with no or little work. Other times, the amount of modification is minimal to make it work in a different setting. That means a monster from Palladium Fantasy® can be easily used as a monster, mutant or alien in Heroes Unlimited™, After the Bomb®,Robotech®, Rifts®, Nightbane®,The Mechanoids®, Chaos Earth® or Splicers®, and vice versa. What needs to be adjusted? Perhaps just changing Hit Points/S.D.C. and damage to Mega-Damage, or M.D.C. and M.D. to Hit Points/S.D.C., or some other minor tweak.

Characters from Heroes Unlimited™ and After the Bomb® can be from the future, or the past (depending on the setting), or they can be mutants, or aliens, or beings from another or parallel world. As I am so wont to say, you are limited only by your imagination. The same holds true for towns, cities and adventures – use that place and the adventure ideas tailored to a different setting. Sure you may have to swap out monsters and treasure, or adjust motives, but you might be surprised how easy, fun and different that adventure plays out in a different world environment. And The Rifter® is the ultimate source for alternative, new and different ideas, adventures, characters, and story ideas. All of which can be tweaked to fit most settings, as can optional rules. The Rifter® is a factory for alternative ideas.

The Rifter® Super-Subscription Offer is your chance to try The Rifter® at a discount price and get a FREE gift. Offer ENDS February 28, 2015.

Click here to see the full description for your subscription options and choice of free gift in the Palladium Online Store.

Robotech® RPG Tactics™

– Available now in the USA and Canada – coming to other parts of the world soon

If you love Robotech®, you’ll want to take a look at this game. Beautifully detailed game pieces of your favorite Robotech® mecha, and fast playing rules that capture the Robotech® experience in a new, exciting way. And this is just the beginning. We have so much more planned. Available NOW – in game stores across the USA and Canada. Available in the UK, European Union, Australia and New Zealand soon.

● Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Boxed Set (Main Box Game) – Cat. No. 55100 – $99.95 retail price. This is the game Robotech® fans have wanted for decades. Robotech® RPG Tactics™ is a fast-paced, tabletop combat game that captures the action and adventure of the Robotech® anime. Two or more players can engage in small squad skirmishes or scale up to massive battles. Relive the clashes of the First Robotech War, engage in stand-alone tactical games, or use the dynamic game pieces to enhance your Robotech® RPG experience. Or simply collect your favorite mecha from an expanding range of top-notch game pieces.

The First Six Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Expansion Packs are available to retail along with the main box game. Here are the SKUs and retail prices.

● Battle Foam Robotech® RPG Tactics™ bag/carrying case – Cat. No. 55107 – $120.00 retail (limited supply). Note: We only have about 50 Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Battle Foam bags available. Once they are sold out it will be months before we manufacture more, if ever.

● Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook – Cat. No. 55105 – $20.00 retail. Note: This is the same rulebook that is included in the main game box, and is offered separately for those who want an extra copy, or want to check out the rules before buying the whole game.

Bizantium and the Northern Islands™ will be sent to the printer in February, but probably won’t be available to ship until around March 12. The book is epic and will spark your imaginations and inspire adventures across the Island Kingdom, the Great Northern Wilderness and to little known realms like the Great Ice Shelf and Land of the Damned.

The Island Kingdom of Bizantium is a refuge for humans in a region known for its lack of humans as well as its vast wilderness, the Wolfen, monsters, and sea serpents. Bizantium’s impressive fleets of merchant vessels and warships travel the seas and oceans of the world. Its people are noble and heroic. The nation is a growing power in the rest of the world. Which is why other kingdoms, like the Western Empire, want to exert their influence on the throne of Bizantium. The result is that treachery and potential power grabs lurk in the shadows. That is but one small story transpiring in the kingdom of the North. Rebellion and war threaten the Shadow Coast colonies, impending war between the Wolfen and the Eastern Territory could erupt at any time, and ancient secrets, if unleashed, could change the fate of not just Bizantium, but the entire world. Meanwhile, dark forces gather in the icy waters beyond the kingdom, and an evil beyond human comprehension stirs.

New Waterchanter O.C.C. and 20+ magic spells new to the Fantasy setting.

Necromancy revisited. Many spells new to the Fantasy setting.

New sea serpents and the warrior sailors who hunt them.

Sea serpent generation tables to create your own sea monsters.

New monsters and animals of the Northern Sea.

Sea serpent ships! Dead sea serpents turned into deadly, massive warships (as depicted on the cover). They threaten sailors in the northern seas as well as the people of Bizantium and the mainland.

The Iceborn, a race of monsters who worship death, wield death magic, and hunt humanoids, eat their flesh, and wear their skin.

New O.C.C.s including the Serpent Chaser and Bizantium Marine.

New weapons and equipment for sailors, mariners, soldiers and adventurers at large.

New Bizantium ships including the Bireme, Ice Breaker and Battleship.

A time-line of the history of Bizantium and many mysteries.

Bizantian society, culture, religion, magic and notable places.

The Eoten of the Northern Islands, their mythology and influence.

The Northern Islands described in full, cities and geography, as well as threats to sailors in the Northern Sea and Sea of Despair.

Bizantium’s many shipyards, possibly the kingdom’s greatest asset.

Key figures of Bizantium and political intrigue.

The Noble Houses, Warlocks and foreign powers all trying to capture the throne of Bizantium for themselves!

Written by Glen Evans. Additional text by Matthew Clements and Kevin Siembieda.

Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines Sourcebook One

Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines sourcebook is set in space with the UEEF (United Earth Expeditionary Force) led by Admiral Rick Hunter. This valiant force of mecha-clad heroes travel across the galaxy liberating planets from the bondage of the Invid Regent, the Robotech Masters and other tyrants and monsters.

Rifts® Sourcebook – The Coalition States: Heroes of Humanity

The events unfolding in World Book 35: Megaverse® in Flames threaten to change the entire landscape of Rifts® Earth, as the demonic minions of Hades and Dyval seek to bring Hell on Earth and turn the planet into a dimensional gateway to Armageddon!

The Coalition States, along with Northern Gun and Lazlo, take the lead in the defense of North America. Heroes of Humanity explores the good and bad in the Coalition’s efforts to save humanity and send this new threat back to the pits of Hell.

New Coalition weapons, armor and war machines.

The Coalition States: Are they heroes or villains? Or does it depend on whether you are human or not?

Can the CS fight alongside mages and D-Bees if it means saving the world?

Rifts® Secrets of the Coalition States: The Disavowed

“Desperate times require desperate measures. War has nothing to do with morality or justice. It’s all about winning or dying. We cannot bind our hands with high ideals, even our own, or worry about the laws of renegade nations or the rights of alien people. We must fight fire with fire. And you are the match.” – Colonel Lyboc addressing a Disavowed team

The Disavowed are so Top Secret that their existence is known only to a handful of the Coalition States’ most elite, top echelon, with Joseph Prosek II the mastermind behind the Disavowed operation, and Colonel Lyboc its shadowy face. Find out who these men and women are. How the Disavowed get away with using magic, traveling to other parts of Rifts Earth and even to other dimensions in pursuit of enemies and strategic information that cannot be had through conventional means. Learn about the secret parameters in which these hard-boiled warriors, secretly hand-picked by Joseph Prosek II, operate, why almost every mission is considered a suicide mission, and why they must forever be the Disavowed.

CS operatives so secret that even the top military and political leaders right up to Emperor Prosek know nothing about them. And if they did know, would they condone their activity or condemn it?

Are the Disavowed heroes or renegades? Assassins or soldiers? Madmen or super-patriots? Or a little of them all?

Unsung heroes who keep the CS safe, or thugs and pawns of a shadow agency within the Coalition government?

What role does the Vanguard play in this group?

How do they reward their D-Bee “teammates” when the mission is over?

What happens to the Disavowed when they have seen or learned too much? Adventure ideas galore and so much more.

Rifts® Secrets of the Atlanteans

True Atlanteans are descendants from Earth’s past. The survivors of the sinking of Atlantis (really a dimensional mishap) and travelers of the Megaverse, wielders of Tattoo Magic and other lost mystic arts. Most people regard them as heroes, but are they? The Sunaj Assassins are mythic villains feared by all, yet they too are True Atlanteans who serve dark forces.

For the first time, much of the story behind True Atlanteans and their secrets are revealed.

True Atlanteans revisited.

Optional Atlantean character creation tables including clan heritage and other factors.

Secrets of the stone pyramids, different types/purposes and powers.

Many new magic tattoos, magic spells, weapons and armor.

Atlantean hideouts and secret communities across the Megaverse.

The Sunaj Assassins, their secrets, history and plans for the future.

Atlantean Monster Hunter O.C.C., Atlantean Defender O.C.C. and much more. And this is just the tip of what this book contains.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook: First Responders

The Great Cataclysm has devastated civilization, but humanity fights for survival. The struggles of civilian law enforcement, fire and rescue, and everyday men and women are some of the most epic tales to be told in a world gone to hell. They fight monsters, aliens, the paranormal, the elements, and each other, all with the hope of reclaiming their lives from the Chaos.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook: Resurrection

In the shattered depths of Wisconsin, survivors are besieged by the dead come back to life. Zombies. But not just any type of zombie, zombies done Rifts-style. And unless the source of the zombie plague can be found and neutralized by NEMA defenders, North America may be overrun by the dead.

This was actually something Taylor White and I have been kicking around for years, even before we released the Dead Reign® RPG line. We think you’ll love it.

Something has animated the dead in Wisconsin. It is up to NEMA heroes to find the cause and stop it before it spreads beyond control.

Plus Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Wave One and Wave Two releases worldwide. And there are still some secret projects and licenses yet to be revealed.

PDF downloads from DriveThruRPG.com

This is a great resource for getting out of print Palladium titles and other select books. We’ve made 100 titles available as PDF digital downloads from DriveThruRPG.com, as well as Fantasy Paper Miniatures, Game Master resources and other good things with more to come. This is a great way to try Palladium products and get access to out of print RPG source material. Some notable titles include:

Click here to see the full description for your subscription options and choice of free gift in the Palladium Online Store.

Podcast interview with Kevin Siembieda on ThisWeekInGeek.net

I enjoyed an interview with Mike Dodd earlier this week. It was fun. I think the 40 minutes or so will be edited down to around 20 minutes. Our conversation touched on the gaming industry in the 1980s and 1990s, TMNT®, Robotech®, Rifts® and getting started in the business. It’s fun, and hopefully the first of more to come. It is my understanding that Mike is shooting to have the interview appear on Sunday, but if not, it will be later next week. Check it out.

We could get Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic™ from the printer as soon as Monday, so get those orders in. Like I said last week, Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic™ is an epic sourcebook for Rifts® Chaos Earth® that explores the explosive return of magic that comes along with the Great Cataclysm. How do survivors of an ongoing cataclysm deal with the sudden appearance of demons, monsters and magic? Magic that appears along the Blue Zones (ley lines) and magic that is suddenly being cast by ordinary people – children and teenagers in particular? Read the book and find out! You won’t be sorry. Taking orders right now.

UPDATE: Chaos Earth® Resurrection™ sourcebook – spring release

Chuck Walton is working away on the final cover for Chaos Earth® Resurrection and it is looking fantastic. Next he’ll start on the interior artwork. I think Amy Ashbaugh will be contributing to this book too. A March or April release, with Chaos Earth® First Responders by Jason Richards coming in the spring or summer.

UPDATE: Bizantium and the Northern Islands™ – Getting close

Bigger. Cooler. Almost done. Expanding size to 192 pages because Bizantium is sooooo good, I can’t bear to leave anything out. Compelling back-story, history, and myth. New and additional material about the kingdom, key locations and its people, the Iceborn, monsters, animals, new character classes, new magic and a ton of adventure hooks. I wanted us to be laying out by this weekend, but other demands on our time made that impossible. I’m working on the remaining 100 or so manuscript pages, Wayne will start typesetting and prep work next week. I love Palladium Fantasy and have missed it as much as you guys.

UPDATE: The Rifter® #69

Everything has been selected, all art has been assigned and The Rifter® #69 is in production. Alex is probably busy editing the last of the material as you read this. See the full description elsewhere in this Update.

UPDATE: The Rifter® #70 and beyond . . .

Matthew Clements has spent this week poring through submissions to The Rifter® so that we have material prepped for the next several issues.

UPDATE: Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines™ Sourcebook

The second I’m done with Bizantium I am all over Robotech® Marines. I want this book out in April at the latest. We’re kicking around ideas for a number of Robotech® products for down the road. Keep your eyes peeled.

UPDATE: The Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook is available now

Want an extra copy of the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook for your players? Order it from Palladium Books right now. Heck, Robotech® collectors might want one just to have. A limited quantity of the dynamic full color rule book is available from the Palladium online store. Cat. No. 55105 – $20.00 retail. See the full description elsewhere in this Update.

UPDATE: Robotech® RPG Tactics™

It is available in stores across the USA and Canada, and soon in Europe and Australia. Check it out, enjoy and spread the word. Hey, for those of you who would like to see the rules first, you can purchase the full color Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook directly from Palladium Books. We also intend to make the rules available online. Thousands of people are building and painting miniatures right now. RRT games and tournaments will start popping up at conventions. See what all the excitement is about.

More online support for the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ game is coming in the days and weeks ahead. Some new comprehensive instructions for building the game pieces have been posted up on DriveThruRPG.com and much more support for the game line will be coming to DriveThruRPG and the Palladium website in the weeks to come. See the DriveThruRPG update, below.

The FREE Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Color Guide Resource is available on DriveThruRPG.com right now, and has been very well received. Please spread the word about the Color Guide and an ever increasing number of comprehensive building instructions.

RRT Europe!

The Robotech® RPG Tactics™ rewards to our backers in Europe should be arriving at the UK port this weekend! We don’t yet know an exact arrival date or how long it may take to clear Customs; probably a few days to a week. Our UK shipper requested we get them all current addresses by last MONDAY – February 16 – but there is still time for some last minute corrections, if necessary, so PLEASE MAKE SURE WE HAVE YOUR CURRENT and CORRECT MAILING ADDRESS.

Australian and all other Overseas Backers, we must have any address change by February 28!

The Robotech® RPG Tactics™ rewards to our backers in Australia will be arriving in port in just under three weeks. Our Australian shipper is requesting we get them all current addresses by February 28 – so they can start prepping for the big mailing as soon as product reaches their doorstep. WE want that too. As do you.

If you have MOVED since the Kickstarter was funded, PLEASE MAKE SURE Palladium Books has your CURRENT address as soon as possible. Europe, that means NOW (this weekend) – EVERYONE ELSE by next Saturday, February 28, 2015. Sooner is always welcomed.

Please check BackerKit ( http://robotech-rpg-tacticstm.backerkit.com ) and make sure your address is correct. If anything does not look right, please send us your address in a Kickstarter message or via email at kickstarter@palladiumbooks.com or call the Palladium office at 734-721-2903 with your new information.

To make sure we see it, make the subject “Address Change.”

TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!!! Do not risk your reward going to the wrong address because YOU failed to update your address. If your rewards go to the wrong address they might be lost and unreplaceable.

NOTE: Palladium Books will NOT be liable for lost goods if you have moved and did not tell us in time. MOREOVER, you will be required to pay the additional shipping to redirect the package to the correct address. Which, if coming directly from the USA, will be considerable ($60-$120 for just Battle Cry) and you will be charged any applicable VAT, duty and other fees. DON’T LET THAT HAPPEN! Please save yourself the time and money and make sure your address is correct right NOW. Thank you very, very much.

Shipping Port Madness: Thankfully, the shipments en route to Europe and Australia are approaching their final destinations, as the insanity in the US West Coast ports reaches new and frightening heights. I heard a report on the news just this morning that the West Coast cargo gridlock continues with no end in sight! The US government has sent the US Secretary of Labor to the West Coast for two days of talks in an effort to help shipping companies and dock workers come to some kind of agreement. Meanwhile, companies importing product from overseas are losing BILLIONS of dollars while goods remain stuck at 30 ports! And their congestion and ever-mounting number of containers piling up have created congestion at ports around the country. That’s insane. It’s like nothing anyone could have imagined. My heart goes out to companies, like Fantasy Flight, who have a great number of products delayed by this insanity.

Palladium will be there selling product and running demos. Chat with Kevin Siembieda, Wayne Smith and Jeff Burke, and play in the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Tournament. We hope to see many of you there. http://www.adepticon.org

Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Tournament – Battle for Macross City – It’s big. It’s fun. There are prizes. Register now to make sure you get to play. We’ve been told the more people who register, the bigger the event will become. Here are the highlights:

This tournament will be 300 points and have several games with fantastic scenarios.

Each table shall be a beautiful custom creation, for a unique gaming experience.

Five different awards will ensure that no matter what aspect of the hobby you are most interested in, there is an award that will be for you.

This tourney is for all levels of players, from first time tournament and convention attendees to the seasoned gamer.

If you find yourself in the Chicagoland area, we would love for you to sign up, stop by and say hello and meet a group of people who have the same interests as you. Even if you are unlikely to play, we would be happy to meet everyone. Come join the fun, fast-paced game of Robotech® RPG Tactics™. Slots are limited!

UPDATE: DriveThruRPG.com – FREE Robotech® RPG Tactics™ color guides, detailed and comprehensive building instructions, The Rifter® #59 and more are available now

Palladium continues to provide FREE support to Robotech® RPG Tactics™ with supplemental material. So far that includes some game cards, the massive mecha painting/color design templates (more than 100 images in color and black and white – and an awesome resource for any Robotech fan), and now some detailed assembly instructions, with MUCH more coming. There is much more to come for Robotech® RPG Tactics™ and other Palladium game lines.

The Rifter® #59 has also been added to titles available. Much, much more is coming in the weeks ahead for Robotech® and other Palladium game lines. We plan to add a bunch of new material to DriveThruRPG.com over the next several weeks, so keep an eye on it. DriveThruRPG.com already offers 90+ Palladium Books titles available as PDFs with more to be made available soon. They currently include the Coalition Wars®/Siege on Tolkeen™ series, Splicers® RPG, The Rifter® issues #1-59 (with more being added soon), and first edition rules of the Rifts® RPG, Beyond the Supernatural™ RPG, Heroes Unlimited™ RPG, The Palladium Fantasy RPG®, and related 1st edition sourcebooks for each. And more! Like what? Like Fantasy Paper Miniatures and Game Master Kits for digital download. They are available only as PDF files and were designed special to help you run your games and build campaigns. There are also sneak previews of books and other good stuff. Check it out! And let other gamers know they are available too. We’ll be making more available on DriveThruRPG in the weeks and months to come, so take a look on a regular basis.

UPDATE: 2015 Palladium Open House (POH) – May 15-17, 2015 – at the Palladium warehouse in Westland, Michigan

I’m pulling out all the stops. I’m digging through my archives to have rare limited editions, original artwork, early printings of out of print Robotech® and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles® books – some signed by the late, great Erick Wujcik – unique collectibles that you seldom see, a Rifts® 25th birthday party and more.

On top of that, there will be 30+ Palladium Creators, gaming galore and lots fun and memories to make. I’m hoping for a record turn out this Open House. Come on down even if it’s for one day to meet and get autographs from 30+ awesome artists, writers and Palladium madmen (and women).

I know I have not been able to do the update for the 2015 Palladium Open House, but it is going to be epic and it may be our last. As we finalize our plans for the 2015 POH we are more and more convinced this may really be the last Open House. So if you can attend – especially if you live in the area – join the fun. It may not happen again. Order your POH tickets now.

Please “reserve” your hotel rooms NOW. It helps Palladium immensely. Likewise, please order your admissions sooner than later so we know how many gaming events to schedule.

● TIME SENSITIVE: Reserve your rooms soon for the 2015 Open House Hotel! Your credit card will NOT be charged until May, so there is no reason not to play it safe and reserve your room. Note: Hotels within a 20 mile area WILL BE BOOKED due to a sporting event the same weekend. You need to RESERVE YOUR ROOM TODAY or the next available hotel may be 20+ miles away. Seriously!

Comfort Inn

40455 Ann Arbor RoadPlymouth, MI 48170Phone: 734-455-8100

Group Code: Palladium Books – you MUST request the Group Code “Palladium Books” at the time of booking to ensure the correct rate will be quoted and billed to you.

Dates of the 2015 Palladium Open House (POH): May 15-17 (May 14 is VIP Thursday), 2015. $109.00 (plus tax) per night for two queen beds or one king with a sofa that has a pull-out sleeper. ALL rooms have a microwave & fridge, and FREE high-speed wired/wireless Internet. Call 734-455-8100 to make your reservation. The hotel does NOT charge your credit card until a few days before the event and you can cancel up to May 10, 2015. So there is no reason to wait.

For more info and to purchase tickets to the Palladium Open House, click here.

GAME MASTERS NEEDED for the Palladium Open House – Submit your games NOW

We want to post a schedule of POH events as soon as we can. To do that we need descriptions from ALL Game Masters in the next week or two. Game Masters POH Rewards: Run 3+ games and get our new G.M. T-shirt FREE (unveiled for the first time at the POH) and a 30% discount on Palladium’s RPG books, T-shirts and most other items (sorry, excludes original art, limited editions, art prints, auction items and Robotech® RPG Tactics). We need plenty of games to satisfy 300 gamers. Your help is appreciated and NEEDED. Help! Contact us by telephone (734-721-2903) or by email at palladium-gm@palladiumbooks.com.

GAME MASTERS NEEDED for Gen Con Indy – MUST have your game descriptions by March 3, 2015

To get into the 2015 Gen Con Indy program book and Pre-Registration, we NEED your commitment and game descriptions by March 3, 2015. SOONER is better. Getting the games listed in the Gen Con Games Pre-Registration is vital to get the outstanding showing we saw at last year’s Gen Con. PLEASE get us ALL game information ASAP to make it into the online pre-reg.

Send your game descriptions in to the Palladium Megaversal Ambassadors pronto at ambassadors@palladiumbooks.com; or by telephone (734-721-2903). We are also looking for volunteers familiar with RRT and wargames to run demos of Robotech® RPG Tactics™ in the miniatures area of Gen Con.

That’s all for now

There’s more to talk about, but that’s all for now. I hope to see a great many of you at the Palladium Open House in May. Place your reservations now and let’s have a blast here at Palladium in a few months. Have a great weekend.

– Kevin Siembieda, Game Designer, Writer, Publisher

The FREE Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Color Guide Resource

The color guide in the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ rule book contains several classic paint schemes from the Robotech® universe, providing different visual options for every unit in the game. Ah, but what about those of you who want to create your own paint schemes? Use these PDFs available for FREE on DriveThruRPG.com as work sheets to create your paint schemes and unique designs on the computer before you go to paint the actual game pieces.

Each of the PDFs provided contains the templates created by artist Jeffrey Burke for the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook. They are in a digital format so that you can colorize and alter them using Photoshop, Paint, or almost any other graphics program to work out and test your original squadron designs. For your convenience, we included the color art as well as black and white “blank” versions of each unit for those of you who want to start from the ground up.

Test out your paint schemes, see how units look next to each other, and get a feel for how your army will look before you break out the paintbrushes. Enjoy.

Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook – Available now

The RRT tabletop rules laid out at your fingertips in full color splendor. Robotech® fans who don’t play Robotech® RPG Tactics™ may want this gorgeous, glossy color book just to have in their collection. Perhaps for the paint guide alone – because the guide, for the first time ever, anywhere, presents all the color schemes for Earth and Zentraedi mecha you see in the TV series (plus some variants). Note: This is the exact same rulebook that is included in the RRT main game box.

The tabletop rules – capture the speed and combat of the animated Robotech® TV series.

Battle scenarios to get started.

Comprehensive Index.

All your favorite Macross mecha.

The Valkyries and Destroids of Earth’s defenders.

The Battlepods of the Zentraedi invaders.

Timeline, basic history and mecha stats.

Applications for use in existing role-playing campaigns.

100+ color images in the Robotech® Mecha Painting Guide.

Gorgeous color artwork throughout.

Created by Palladium Books and Ninja Division. Written by Carmen Bellaire and David Freeman.

NEW! The Rifter® #69 – March – in final production

The Rifter® #69 is packed with exciting and fun material for Rifts®, Chaos Earth®, After the Bomb®, Dead Reign®, Heroes Unlimited™ and more!

Every issue of The Rifter® is an idea factory for players and Game Masters to generate new ideas and find new avenues of adventure. It provides useful, ready to go source material you can just drop into your ongoing games. A doorway to new possibilities and numerous Palladium role-playing worlds. And the many new characters, O.C.C.s, powers, magic, weapons, villains, monsters, adventures and ideas for one setting can be easily adapted to any Palladium setting. Every issue has material for Rifts® and at least 2-3 other Palladium game lines.

With 2015 being the 25th Anniversary of Rifts®, every issue of The Rifter® will feature a Rifts® inspired cover and contain at least one Rifts® article.

The Rifter® #69 – Winter, 2015:

Rifts®: Arenas of Atlantis by Will Erwin.

Rifts® Chaos Earth®: First Responders of New Mexico by Daniel Frederick.

Rise of Magic™ – Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook – Ships Next Week

We’ve all played “post” apocalyptic games. Now imagine playing as the apocalypse is happening. As the world you know is crumbling. As magic and monsters from myth become real and your world is reshaped by forces beyond your comprehension. That is the premise behind the Rifts® Chaos Earth® series. That YOU play through the Great Cataclysm as the apocalypse happens.

Rifts® Chaos Earth®: Rise of Magic™ is a key book in that continuing story (new books are coming this Spring and Summer). In Rise of Magic™, humans, particularly children, are discovering they can draw upon mystic energy and cast magic. The thing is, they don’t really know what they are doing. Magic is just part of the chaos and the impossible that is happening all around them. Meanwhile, others have found they can summon and control monsters and demons, while still others make pacts with supernatural beings to become witches and worse. And some have learned they can harness the magic to animate and command the dead. Madness and more chaos ensues. All of this only complicates things for NEMA, Earth’s defenders, as the line of distinction between “good guys” and “bad guys” begins to blur, and things go from bad to worse.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® RPG – Available now

The origins of Rifts® start here! It is a new beginning. But first everything that human civilization had become during the Golden Age of Science, more than eighty years in our future, must come to a crashing end. The Earth is in the process of being transformed into a place more alien than a thousand alien worlds. Ley Lines erupt with even more power and ambient energy than what is known on Rifts Earth 300 years later. Rifts – tears in space and time – appear along ley lines to unleash legions of aliens, monsters, dragons, supernatural horrors, and ancient gods of myth and legend in a mad symphony of chaos and transformation.

You play survivors or the heroes of NEMA. The men and women of the Northern Eagle Military Alliance equipped with their Chromium Guardsmen (Glitter Boys), Silver Eagles (SAMAS) and host of other robots and power armor to stand against a rising tide of enemies and alien invaders. They are humanity’s last and only hope to survive the apocalypse that will become known as the Great Cataclysm. These are the heroes you play in a world that can only be described as Chaos Earth.

Overview of the Great Cataclysm as it unfolds.

Introduction to NEMA and its weapons and resources.

11 different character classes, including robot pilots, the Para-Arcane, Demon and Witch Hunters, Chromium Guardsmen, Silver Eagles, and more.

Rifts® Book of Magic – Back in Print – NEEDED for Rise of Magic™ and the Chaos Earth® RPG setting

Rifts® Book of Magic is 352 pages of nothing but magic – 850+ spells, 370+ magic items, including Rune Weapons, Techno-Wizard items, Bio-Wizard Splugorth creations, and Iron Juggernauts, and more. That’s cover to cover spells and magic items and a few related odds and ends like Atlantean Tattoos and the Nazca Lines. Everything collected from the first 23 World Books, Sourcebooks 1-4, and Siege on Tolkeen 1-6 into one giant reference of magical goodness.

Optional rules & clarification on magic and more. Note: It is a vital reference for Rifts® Chaos Earth™, Rifts® Federation of Magic, the Rifts® China books and all Rifts® titles. Furthermore, spells and most magic items are easy to adapt to world settings like Palladium Fantasy® and Heroes Unlimited™. Don’t get caught without it.

The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive – Low Price – Free Gift

It only happens once a year – for a limited time – The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive. We want people to discover The Rifter® as a valuable resource, so we are offering the biggest selection of FREE gifts ever as an enticement. Gamers already familiar with The Rifter® always jump at this offer. That’s because, even when late, The Rifter® has been so consistently good, it is hard to say no to the Super-Subscription Drive.

The free gift is always a nice incentive, and this year the selection is truly unique and fun. I have dug through the Palladium archives to make a number of out of print titles and “special” items available. For us, gaming is all about friends and fun, so enjoy and have fun. Note: The early issues of The Rifter® are limited and available only while supplies last. Please keep the orders coming and enjoy.

Here are four reasons (and 7 gift choices) why this is the perfect time to try The Rifter® or renew your subscription:

1. Save $16 off retail and each issue is delivered right to your door.

3. Order during the Super-Subscription Drive to lock in your low, low subscription price for the next year.

4. The Rifter® has been outstanding and is the place to find regular source material for Beyond the Supernatural™, Palladium Fantasy®, Splicers®, and Heroes Unlimited™ and other settings. And future issues will have more playing and G.M. tips.

If you haven’t taken a look at The Rifter® lately (if ever), I suggest you try an issue. The Rifter® is an excellent source of ideas, characters, monsters, villains, powers, magic and adventures for your own game. Even articles designed for settings you don’t play are likely to offer ideas and material you can easily modify and incorporate into your campaign. In fact, drawing on concepts from outside the usual setting can spice up your game and keep players guessing. The Rifter® is a great tool for that. That’s the beauty of the Palladium Megaversal Game System; you can often take characters, gear and ideas from one world setting and drop them into ANY of the other settings with no or little work. Other times, the amount of modification is minimal to make it work in a different setting. That means a monster from Palladium Fantasy® can be easily used as a monster, mutant or alien in Heroes Unlimited™, After the Bomb®,Robotech®, Rifts®, Nightbane®,The Mechanoids®, Chaos Earth® or Splicers®, and vice versa. What needs to be adjusted? Perhaps just changing Hit Points/S.D.C. and damage to Mega-Damage, or M.D.C. and M.D. to Hit Points/S.D.C., or some other minor tweak.

Characters from Heroes Unlimited™ and After the Bomb® can be from the future, or the past (depending on the setting), or they can be mutants, or aliens, or beings from another or parallel world. As I am so wont to say, you are limited only by your imagination. The same holds true for towns, cities and adventures – use that place and the adventure ideas tailored to a different setting. Sure you may have to swap out monsters and treasure, or adjust motives, but you might be surprised how easy, fun and different that adventure plays out in a different world environment. And The Rifter® is the ultimate source for alternative, new and different ideas, adventures, characters, and story ideas. All of which can be tweaked to fit most settings, as can optional rules. The Rifter® is a factory for alternative ideas.

The Rifter® Super-Subscription Offer is your chance to try The Rifter® at a discount price and get a FREE gift. Offer ENDS February 28, 2015.

Click here to see the full description for your subscription options and choice of free gift in the Palladium Online Store.

Robotech® RPG Tactics™

– Available now in the USA and Canada – coming to other parts of the world soon

If you love Robotech®, you’ll want to take a look at this game. Beautifully detailed game pieces of your favorite Robotech® mecha, and fast playing rules that capture the Robotech® experience in a new, exciting way. And this is just the beginning. We have so much more planned. Available NOW – in game stores across the USA and Canada. Available in the UK, European Union, Australia and New Zealand soon.

● Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Boxed Set (Main Box Game) – Cat. No. 55100 – $99.95 retail price. This is the game Robotech® fans have wanted for decades. Robotech® RPG Tactics™ is a fast-paced, tabletop combat game that captures the action and adventure of the Robotech® anime. Two or more players can engage in small squad skirmishes or scale up to massive battles. Relive the clashes of the First Robotech War, engage in stand-alone tactical games, or use the dynamic game pieces to enhance your Robotech® RPG experience. Or simply collect your favorite mecha from an expanding range of top-notch game pieces.

The First Six Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Expansion Packs are available to retail along with the main box game. Here are the SKUs and retail prices.

● Battle Foam Robotech® RPG Tactics™ bag/carrying case – Cat. No. 55107 – $120.00 retail (limited supply). Note: We only have about 50 Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Battle Foam bags available. Once they are sold out it will be months before we manufacture more, if ever.

● Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook – Cat. No. 55105 – $20.00 retail. Note: This is the same rulebook that is included in the main game box, and is offered separately for those who want an extra copy, or want to check out the rules before buying the whole game.

Bizantium and the Northern Islands™ will be sent to the printer in February, but probably won’t be available to ship until around March 12. The book is epic and will spark your imaginations and inspire adventures across the Island Kingdom, the Great Northern Wilderness and to little known realms like the Great Ice Shelf and Land of the Damned.

The Island Kingdom of Bizantium is a refuge for humans in a region known for its lack of humans as well as its vast wilderness, the Wolfen, monsters, and sea serpents. Bizantium’s impressive fleets of merchant vessels and warships travel the seas and oceans of the world. Its people are noble and heroic. The nation is a growing power in the rest of the world. Which is why other kingdoms, like the Western Empire, want to exert their influence on the throne of Bizantium. The result is that treachery and potential power grabs lurk in the shadows. That is but one small story transpiring in the kingdom of the North. Rebellion and war threaten the Shadow Coast colonies, impending war between the Wolfen and the Eastern Territory could erupt at any time, and ancient secrets, if unleashed, could change the fate of not just Bizantium, but the entire world. Meanwhile, dark forces gather in the icy waters beyond the kingdom, and an evil beyond human comprehension stirs.

New Waterchanter O.C.C. and 20+ magic spells new to the Fantasy setting.

Necromancy revisited. Many spells new to the Fantasy setting.

New sea serpents and the warrior sailors who hunt them.

Sea serpent generation tables to create your own sea monsters.

New monsters and animals of the Northern Sea.

Sea serpent ships! Dead sea serpents turned into deadly, massive warships (as depicted on the cover). They threaten sailors in the northern seas as well as the people of Bizantium and the mainland.

The Iceborn, a race of monsters who worship death, wield death magic, and hunt humanoids, eat their flesh, and wear their skin.

New O.C.C.s including the Serpent Chaser and Bizantium Marine.

New weapons and equipment for sailors, mariners, soldiers and adventurers at large.

New Bizantium ships including the Bireme, Ice Breaker and Battleship.

A time-line of the history of Bizantium and many mysteries.

Bizantian society, culture, religion, magic and notable places.

The Eoten of the Northern Islands, their mythology and influence.

The Northern Islands described in full, cities and geography, as well as threats to sailors in the Northern Sea and Sea of Despair.

Bizantium’s many shipyards, possibly the kingdom’s greatest asset.

Key figures of Bizantium and political intrigue.

The Noble Houses, Warlocks and foreign powers all trying to capture the throne of Bizantium for themselves!

Written by Glen Evans. Additional text by Matthew Clements and Kevin Siembieda.

Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines Sourcebook One

Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines sourcebook is set in space with the UEEF (United Earth Expeditionary Force) led by Admiral Rick Hunter. This valiant force of mecha-clad heroes travel across the galaxy liberating planets from the bondage of the Invid Regent, the Robotech Masters and other tyrants and monsters.

Rifts® Sourcebook – The Coalition States: Heroes of Humanity

The events unfolding in World Book 35: Megaverse® in Flames threaten to change the entire landscape of Rifts® Earth, as the demonic minions of Hades and Dyval seek to bring Hell on Earth and turn the planet into a dimensional gateway to Armageddon!

The Coalition States, along with Northern Gun and Lazlo, take the lead in the defense of North America. Heroes of Humanity explores the good and bad in the Coalition’s efforts to save humanity and send this new threat back to the pits of Hell.

New Coalition weapons, armor and war machines.

The Coalition States: Are they heroes or villains? Or does it depend on whether you are human or not?

Can the CS fight alongside mages and D-Bees if it means saving the world?

Rifts® Secrets of the Coalition States: The Disavowed

“Desperate times require desperate measures. War has nothing to do with morality or justice. It’s all about winning or dying. We cannot bind our hands with high ideals, even our own, or worry about the laws of renegade nations or the rights of alien people. We must fight fire with fire. And you are the match.” – Colonel Lyboc addressing a Disavowed team

The Disavowed are so Top Secret that their existence is known only to a handful of the Coalition States’ most elite, top echelon, with Joseph Prosek II the mastermind behind the Disavowed operation, and Colonel Lyboc its shadowy face. Find out who these men and women are. How the Disavowed get away with using magic, traveling to other parts of Rifts Earth and even to other dimensions in pursuit of enemies and strategic information that cannot be had through conventional means. Learn about the secret parameters in which these hard-boiled warriors, secretly hand-picked by Joseph Prosek II, operate, why almost every mission is considered a suicide mission, and why they must forever be the Disavowed.

CS operatives so secret that even the top military and political leaders right up to Emperor Prosek know nothing about them. And if they did know, would they condone their activity or condemn it?

Are the Disavowed heroes or renegades? Assassins or soldiers? Madmen or super-patriots? Or a little of them all?

Unsung heroes who keep the CS safe, or thugs and pawns of a shadow agency within the Coalition government?

What role does the Vanguard play in this group?

How do they reward their D-Bee “teammates” when the mission is over?

What happens to the Disavowed when they have seen or learned too much? Adventure ideas galore and so much more.

Rifts® Secrets of the Atlanteans

True Atlanteans are descendants from Earth’s past. The survivors of the sinking of Atlantis (really a dimensional mishap) and travelers of the Megaverse, wielders of Tattoo Magic and other lost mystic arts. Most people regard them as heroes, but are they? The Sunaj Assassins are mythic villains feared by all, yet they too are True Atlanteans who serve dark forces.

For the first time, much of the story behind True Atlanteans and their secrets are revealed.

True Atlanteans revisited.

Optional Atlantean character creation tables including clan heritage and other factors.

Secrets of the stone pyramids, different types/purposes and powers.

Many new magic tattoos, magic spells, weapons and armor.

Atlantean hideouts and secret communities across the Megaverse.

The Sunaj Assassins, their secrets, history and plans for the future.

Atlantean Monster Hunter O.C.C., Atlantean Defender O.C.C. and much more. And this is just the tip of what this book contains.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook: First Responders

The Great Cataclysm has devastated civilization, but humanity fights for survival. The struggles of civilian law enforcement, fire and rescue, and everyday men and women are some of the most epic tales to be told in a world gone to hell. They fight monsters, aliens, the paranormal, the elements, and each other, all with the hope of reclaiming their lives from the Chaos.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook: Resurrection

In the shattered depths of Wisconsin, survivors are besieged by the dead come back to life. Zombies. But not just any type of zombie, zombies done Rifts-style. And unless the source of the zombie plague can be found and neutralized by NEMA defenders, North America may be overrun by the dead.

This was actually something Taylor White and I have been kicking around for years, even before we released the Dead Reign® RPG line. We think you’ll love it.

Something has animated the dead in Wisconsin. It is up to NEMA heroes to find the cause and stop it before it spreads beyond control.

Plus Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Wave One and Wave Two releases worldwide. And there are still some secret projects and licenses yet to be revealed.

PDF downloads from DriveThruRPG.com

This is a great resource for getting out of print Palladium titles and other select books. We’ve made 100 titles available as PDF digital downloads from DriveThruRPG.com, as well as Fantasy Paper Miniatures, Game Master resources and other good things with more to come. This is a great way to try Palladium products and get access to out of print RPG source material. Some notable titles include:

Click here to see the full description for your subscription options and choice of free gift in the Palladium Online Store.

UPDATE: Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic™ – Ships February 24, 2015

I bet you forgot all about this one, didn’t you? I sure forgot to mention it coming back in stock in the last Weekly Update or two.

Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic™ is an epic sourcebook for Rifts® Chaos Earth® that explores the explosive return of magic that comes along with the Great Cataclysm. How do survivors of an ongoing cataclysm deal with the sudden appearance of demons, monsters and magic? Magic that appears along the Blue Zones (ley lines) and magic that is suddenly being cast by ordinary people – children and teenagers in particular? Read the book and find out! You won’t be sorry.

We are taking pre-orders for Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic™ right now. It ships in less than two weeks! Heck, order one when you place your order for a subscription to The Rifter® this weekend. I approved the digital proofs and cover this morning. The printer has already confirmed the February 24 ship date. The book looks great.

Even though Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic™ was a popular sourcebook for the Chaos Earth® series, it was left out of print the last few years. In part, because there were a zillion small corrections and tweaks to be made and we had to completely re-layout the book. Well, it is done and at the printer. Note: See the complete description later in this update.

What’s Next for Chaos Earth®?

UPDATE: Bizantium and the Northern Islands™ – Getting close

This is the beast I have been pounding away on with fierce intensity. First, it is being expanded from 160 pages to 192 pages. Second, it is illustrated with dynamic artwork by Chuck Walton, Tanya Ramsey, Mark Dudley, Ben Rodriguez, Amy Ashbaugh and me. Third, it is packed – and I mean packed – with all sorts of background, world information, people, places and adventure ideas galore. Not to mention new monsters and creatures.

I think one of the monsters is destined to become a fan favorite, a race of humanoids known as the Iceborn. They are one of the forgotten archaic races that people south of Bizantium and as close as the Eastern Territory don’t even believe exist. They think the Iceborn are nothing more than the stuff of legend. A mythological boogie-man spoken of in tall tales from Bizantium sailors to frighten children and outsiders. Those people are gravely mistaken.

The Iceborn are hate-filled nomadic savages who call upon the dark powers of Necromancy and Witchcraft given to them by an ancient evil. They travel the Icy Ocean and Northern Sea, with no place they call home. They live aboard massive ships made from the corpses of sea serpents. Each vessel is both warship and the tribe’s floating home. Every few years the Iceborn press south to raid the ships and coasts of Bizantium, the Great Northern Wilderness and the Land of the Damned. (Yes, they are so brazen they’ll attack the Land of the Damned!) Every century or so, they sweep down from the Great Ice Shelf en masse, on a campaign of slaughter and death. Such a campaign is long overdue. So overdue that some among the people of Bizantium hope that the Iceborn have finally perished in the harsh environment of ice and death far to the north. If only that were true.

The Iceborn are just one small part of the Bizantium sourcebook. Do I sound excited? I am. And I think you will be too. Writer Glen Evans has inspired me to expand upon his work to release what I think is an epic and exciting new world book for Palladium Fantasy. And I hope it is only the first of several new sourcebooks for the Palladium Fantasy setting coming down the pipe. Note: See the complete description later in this update.

I have to admit, I’ve been on fire working on this book. Jeff Burke said he hates disturbing me, because every time he walks into my room I look “intense, focused and typing like mad. Like a man possessed.” Fellow writer, Matthew Clements, said everything he has read from me “is inspired” and “inspiring.” Chuck Walton concurs, “Kevin,” he told me, “this writing inspires me.” I love it. I worked on Bizantium for 20 hours over the weekend, Saturday and Sunday, and most of this week. Even on days like today, when I was forced to deal with other matters, I put in no less than five hours working on Bizantium. Yesterday, I wrote from 7:30 AM till 7:30 PM, stopping only to eat and take a few short breaks. I expect to be done by the end of next week.

UPDATE: The Rifter® #69 – February Release

Wayne Smith has selected most of the material for The Rifter® #69 and the artwork has been assigned. It is another issue that has gotten pushed back as we focus on many different things that need to get done, but it is another great issue, and we’re already working on The Rifter® #70 as well.

UPDATE: Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines™ Sourcebook

The second I’m done with Bizantium I am all over Robotech® Marines. I want this book out in March. April at the latest.

UPDATE: Chaos Earth® Resurrection™ sourcebook – Spring release

Nothing new on this front other than the fact that I am determined to make Chaos Earth® Resurrection a Spring release and Chuck is working on the cover even as you read this. A March or April release.

UPDATE: Robotech® RPG Tactics™

For the moment, I have left work on Robotech® RPG Tactics™ in the capable hands of Wayne Smith, Jeff Burke and others. I know they are planning more things for posting online, the FAQ, and a surprise or two. Wayne spoke to the manufacturer about changes needed on Wave Two game pieces and he and Jeff Burke continue to review and correct the engineered 3D renders.

FREE Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Paint Guide Resource now available on DriveThruRPG. This is a pair of PDFs of Robotech® mecha presented as black and white line art as well as in various color schemes. They are a) for your reference, and b) for you to use to create your own color schemes on the computer before you paint.

Australia & Europe Shipping Updates. In an ironic moment earlier this week, the two ships with the containers holding Kickstarter backer rewards heading to the European Union and Australia (each going opposite directions) passed within a couple miles of each other off the coast of North Carolina. They were out of coastal radar range when they passed, but Wayne did manage to snap a screenshot of their paths crossing each other a couple hours after it happened.

UPDATE: AdeptiCon – March 19-22, 2015, Chicago – www.adepticon.org

We packed up the 14 cases of giveaways (1,000 pieces) for the AdeptiCon swag bags last week and they are already in the convention’s hands (thanks Greg). It is a Robotech® RPG Tactics™ sprue with two Valkyries in battloid mode. We also sent out the three gold edition books for the charity auction. Wow, are the AdeptiCon people great to work with. Everyone seems to be really on the ball and they love this hobby. I can see why AdeptiCon is so successful and growing like crazy. We are so pleased to be part of it this year. Can’t believe it is next month already. Please come by the Palladium booth to chat, see Robotech® RPG Tactics™ and pick up product. http://www.adepticon.org

Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Tournament at AdeptiCon – www.adepticon.org

It’s big. It’s fun. There are prizes. Register for this event. We’ve been told the more people who register, the bigger the event will become. The big AdeptiCon Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Tournament is Battle for Macross City™. Here are the highlights:

This tournament will be 300 points and have several games with fantastic scenarios.

Each table shall be a beautiful custom creation, for a unique gaming experience.

Five different awards will ensure that no matter what aspect of the hobby you are most interested in, there is an award that will be for you.

This tourney is for all levels of players, from first time tournament and convention attendees to the seasoned gamer.

If you find yourself in the Chicagoland area, we would love for you to sign up, stop by and say hello and meet a group of people who have the same interests as you. Even if you are unlikely to play, we would be happy to meet everyone. Come join the fun, fast-paced game of Robotech® RPG Tactics™. Slots are limited!

In the last couple of weeks, Wayne has added some Robotech® RPG Tactics™ supplemental material including four game cards and the mecha painting/color design templates. There is much more to come for Robotech® RPG Tactics™ and other Palladium game lines.

The FREE Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Paint Guide Resource. The color guide in the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ rule book contains several classic paint schemes from the Robotech® universe, providing different visual options for every unit in the game. Ah, but what about those of you who want to create your own paint schemes? Use these PDFs as work sheets to create your paint schemes and unique designs on the computer before you go to paint the actual game pieces.

Each of the PDFs provided contains the templates created by artist Jeffrey Burke for the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ rule book. They are in a digital format so that you can colorize and alter them using Photoshop, Paint, or almost any other graphics program to work out and test your original squadron designs. For your convenience, we included the color art as well as black and white “blank” versions of each unit for those of you who want to start from the ground up.

Test out your paint schemes, see how units look next to each other, and get a feel for how your army will look before you break out the paintbrushes. Enjoy.

Much, much more is coming in the weeks ahead. We plan to add a bunch of new material to DriveThruRPG.com over the next several weeks, so keep an eye on it. DriveThruRPG.com already offers 90+ Palladium Books titles available as PDFs with more to be made available soon. They currently include the Coalition Wars®/Siege on Tolkeen™ series, Splicers® RPG, The Rifter® issues #1-58 (with more being added soon), and first edition rules of the Rifts® RPG, Beyond the Supernatural™ RPG, Heroes Unlimited™ RPG, The Palladium Fantasy RPG®, and related 1st edition sourcebooks for each. And more! Like what? Like Fantasy Paper Miniatures and Game Master Kits for digital download. They are available only as PDF files and were designed special to help you run your games and build campaigns. There are also sneak previews of books and other good stuff. Check it out! And let other gamers know they are available too. We’ll be making more available on DriveThruRPG.com in the weeks and months to come. So take a look on a regular basis.

UPDATE: 2015 Palladium Open House (POH) – May 15-17, 2015 – at the Palladium warehouse in Westland, Michigan

As we start to finalize our plans for the 2015 Palladium Open House – the best ever, we hope – we are starting to realize this may really be our last Open House. In the future, we suspect we will not have the room to host the gathering in our warehouse, amongst other considerations. That makes preparations for this (last?) Open House a little bittersweet. Another reason to make it the best one ever.

The VIP Thursday tickets are almost sold out! I think there are only a half dozen or so left, so if you are planning to be at VIP night, order very soon. Sold on a first-come, first-served basis. Note: If you are told tickets are sold out, put your name on the waiting list. Every year there are easily a half dozen people who have to cancel a couple weeks and even a few days before the POH. When they do, we call the next person on the “VIP Cancellation List.”

Please “reserve” your hotel rooms NOW. It helps Palladium immensely. Likewise, please order your admissions sooner than later so we know how many gaming events to schedule.

● Approximately 30 Palladium Creators have confirmed they will be at the Open House.

● TIME SENSITIVE: Reserve your rooms soon for the 2015 Open House Hotel! Your credit card will NOT be charged until May, so there is no reason not to play it safe and reserve your room. Note: Hotels within a 20 mile area WILL BE BOOKED due to a sporting event the same weekend. You need to RESERVE YOUR ROOM TODAY or the next available hotel may be 20+ miles away. Seriously!

Comfort Inn

40455 Ann Arbor RoadPlymouth, MI 48170Phone: 734-455-8100

Group Code: Palladium Books – you MUST request the Group Code “Palladium Books” at the time of booking to ensure the correct rate will be quoted and billed to you.

Dates of the 2015 Palladium Open House (POH): May 15-17 (May 14 is VIP Thursday), 2015. $109.00 (plus tax) per night for two queen beds or one king with a sofa that has a pull-out sleeper. ALL rooms have a microwave & fridge and FREE high-speed wired/wireless Internet. The hotel also offers a FREE hot breakfast from 6 A.M. to 10 A.M. near the lobby, heated indoor swimming pool, a fitness center (24 hours), and a coin operated laundry. If you know you are coming to the 2015 Palladium Open House, we recommend you reserve your room today. Important Note: You MUST give them the Group Code: Palladium Books to get this rate. Call 734-455-8100 to make your reservation. The hotel does NOT charge your credit card until a few days before the event and you can cancel up to May 10, 2015. So there is no reason to wait.

● 2015 POH Game Masters needed. Run 3+ games and get our new G.M. T-shirt FREE (unveiled for the first time at the POH) and a 30% discount on Palladium’s RPG books, T-shirts and most other items (sorry, excludes original art, limited editions, art prints, auction items and Robotech® RPG Tactics). We need plenty of games to satisfy 300 gamers. Your help is appreciated and welcomed. Contact us by telephone (734-721-2903) or by email at palladium-gm@palladiumbooks.com.

For more info and to purchase tickets to the Palladium Open House, click here.

Gen Con Indy – July 30 to August 2, 2015

The important thing right now is we NEED Game Masters who plan to run Palladium events to contact Palladium Books and/or Gen Con game coordinator NMI with information about your games. We need your game info as soon as possible to get your games registered and in the Gen Con program book and online pre-reg. Getting the games listed in the Gen Con Games Pre-Registration is vital to get the outstanding showing we saw at last year’s Gen Con. PLEASE get us ALL game information ASAP to make it into the online pre-reg.

Send your game descriptions in to the Palladium Megaversal Ambassadors pronto at ambassadors@palladiumbooks.com; or by telephone (734-721-2903). We are also looking for volunteers familiar with RRT and wargames to run demos of Robotech® RPG Tactics™ in the miniatures area of Gen Con.

Happy Valentine’s Day

Saturday is Valentine’s Day. Be kind and considerate of your sweetheart, express your love and appreciation, and have a nice day. And from me to you, we love you crazy gaming maniacs. You’re why we do all this. Many of you have been with us through thick and thin. Some of you are new. All of us have shared adventures and worlds that are a joy to visit and explore. Thank you for enjoying the worlds we create and for being the greatest fans anyone could hope for. Game on and keep those amazing imaginations burning bright – always.

– Kevin Siembieda, Game Designer, Writer, Publisher

Rise of Magic™ – Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook – February

We’ve all played “post” apocalyptic games. Now imagine playing as the apocalypse is happening. As the world you know is crumbling. As magic and monsters from myth become real and your world is reshaped by forces beyond your comprehension. That is the premise behind the Rifts® Chaos Earth® series. That YOU play through the Great Cataclysm as the apocalypse happens.

Rifts® Chaos Earth®: Rise of Magic™ is a key book in that continuing story (new books are coming this Spring and Summer). In Rise of Magic™, humans, particularly children, are discovering they can draw upon mystic energy and cast magic. The thing is, they don’t really know what they are doing. Magic is just part of the chaos and the impossible that is happening all around them. Meanwhile, others have found they can summon and control monsters and demons, while still others make pacts with supernatural beings to become witches and worse. And some have learned they can harness the magic to animate and command the dead. Madness and more chaos ensues. All of this only complicates things for NEMA, Earth’s defenders, as the line of distinction between “good guys” and “bad guys” begins to blur, and things go from bad to worse.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® RPG – Available now

The origins of Rifts® start here! It is a new beginning. But first everything that human civilization had become during the Golden Age of Science, more than eighty years in our future, must come to a crashing end. The Earth is in the process of being transformed into a place more alien than a thousand alien worlds. Ley Lines erupt with even more power and ambient energy than what is known on Rifts Earth 300 years later. Rifts – tears in space and time – appear along ley lines to unleash legions of aliens, monsters, dragons, supernatural horrors, and ancient gods of myth and legend in a mad symphony of chaos and transformation.

You play survivors or the heroes of NEMA. The men and women of the Northern Eagle Military Alliance equipped with their Chromium Guardsmen (Glitter Boys), Silver Eagles (SAMAS) and host of other robots and power armor to stand against a rising tide of enemies and alien invaders. They are humanity’s last and only hope to survive the apocalypse that will become known as the Great Cataclysm. These are the heroes you play in a world that can only be described as Chaos Earth.

Overview of the Great Cataclysm as it unfolds.

Introduction to NEMA and its weapons and resources.

11 different character classes, including robot pilots, the Para-Arcane, Demon and Witch Hunters, Chromium Guardsmen, Silver Eagles, and more.

Rifts® Book of Magic – Back in Print – NEEDED for Rise of Magic™ and the Chaos Earth® RPG setting

Rifts® Book of Magic is 352 pages of nothing but magic – 850+ spells, 370+ magic items, including Rune Weapons, Techno-Wizard items, Bio-Wizard Splugorth creations, and Iron Juggernauts, and more. That’s cover to cover spells and magic items and a few related odds and ends like Atlantean Tattoos and the Nazca Lines. Everything collected from the first 23 World Books, Sourcebooks 1-4, and Siege on Tolkeen 1-6 into one giant reference of magical goodness.

Optional rules & clarification on magic and more. Note: It is a vital reference for Rifts® Chaos Earth™, Rifts® Federation of Magic, the Rifts® China books and all Rifts® titles. Furthermore, spells and most magic items are easy to adapt to world settings like Palladium Fantasy® and Heroes Unlimited™. Don’t get caught without it.

The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive – Low Price – Free Gift

It only happens once a year – for a limited time – The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive. We want people to discover The Rifter® as a valuable resource, so we are offering the biggest selection of FREE gifts ever as an enticement. Gamers already familiar with The Rifter® always jump at this offer. That’s because, even when late, The Rifter® has been so consistently good, it is hard to say no to the Super-Subscription Drive.

The free gift is always a nice incentive, and this year the selection is truly unique and fun. I have dug through the Palladium archives to make a number of out of print titles and “special” items available. For us, gaming is all about friends and fun, so enjoy and have fun. Note: The early issues of The Rifter® are limited and available only while supplies last. Please keep the orders coming and enjoy.

Here are four reasons (and 7 gift choices) why this is the perfect time to try The Rifter® or renew your subscription:

1. Save $16 off retail and each issue is delivered right to your door.

3. Order during the Super-Subscription Drive to lock in your low, low subscription price for the next year.

4. The Rifter® has been outstanding and is the place to find regular source material for Beyond the Supernatural™, Palladium Fantasy®, Splicers®, and Heroes Unlimited™ and other settings. And future issues will have more playing and G.M. tips.

If you haven’t taken a look at The Rifter® lately (if ever), I suggest you try an issue. The Rifter® is an excellent source of ideas, characters, monsters, villains, powers, magic and adventures for your own game. Even articles designed for settings you don’t play are likely to offer ideas and material you can easily modify and incorporate into your campaign. In fact, drawing on concepts from outside the usual setting can spice up your game and keep players guessing. The Rifter® is a great tool for that. That’s the beauty of the Palladium Megaversal Game System; you can often take characters, gear and ideas from one world setting and drop them into ANY of the other settings with no or little work. Other times, the amount of modification is minimal to make it work in a different setting. That means a monster from Palladium Fantasy® can be easily used as a monster, mutant or alien in Heroes Unlimited™, After the Bomb®,Robotech®, Rifts®, Nightbane®,The Mechanoids®, Chaos Earth® or Splicers®, and vice versa. What needs to be adjusted? Perhaps just changing Hit Points/S.D.C. and damage to Mega-Damage, or M.D.C. and M.D. to Hit Points/S.D.C., or some other minor tweak.

Characters from Heroes Unlimited™ and After the Bomb® can be from the future, or the past (depending on the setting), or they can be mutants, or aliens, or beings from another or parallel world. As I am so wont to say, you are limited only by your imagination. The same holds true for towns, cities and adventures – use that place and the adventure ideas tailored to a different setting. Sure you may have to swap out monsters and treasure, or adjust motives, but you might be surprised how easy, fun and different that adventure plays out in a different world environment. And The Rifter® is the ultimate source for alternative, new and different ideas, adventures, characters, and story ideas. All of which can be tweaked to fit most settings, as can optional rules. The Rifter® is a factory for alternative ideas.

The Rifter® Super-Subscription Offer is your chance to try The Rifter® at a discount price and get a FREE gift. Offer ENDS February 28, 2015.

Click here to see the full description for your subscription options and choice of free gift in the Palladium Online Store.

Robotech® RPG Tactics™

– Available now in the USA and Canada – coming to other parts of the world soon

If you love Robotech®, you’ll want to take a look at this game. Beautifully detailed game pieces of your favorite Robotech® mecha, and fast playing rules that capture the Robotech® experience in a new, exciting way. And this is just the beginning. We have so much more planned. Available NOW – in game stores across the USA and Canada. Available in the UK, European Union, Australia and New Zealand soon.

● Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Boxed Set (Main Box Game) – Cat. No. 55100 – $99.95 retail price. This is the game Robotech® fans have wanted for decades. Robotech® RPG Tactics™ is a fast-paced, tabletop combat game that captures the action and adventure of the Robotech® anime. Two or more players can engage in small squad skirmishes or scale up to massive battles. Relive the clashes of the First Robotech War, engage in stand-alone tactical games, or use the dynamic game pieces to enhance your Robotech® RPG experience. Or simply collect your favorite mecha from an expanding range of top-notch game pieces.

The First Six Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Expansion Packs are available to retail along with the main box game. Here are the SKUs and retail prices.

● Battle Foam Robotech® RPG Tactics™ bag/carrying case – Cat. No. 55107 – $120.00 retail (limited supply). Note: We only have about 50 Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Battle Foam bags available. Once they are sold out it will be months before we manufacture more, if ever.

● Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook – Cat. No. 55105 – $20.00 retail. Note: This is the same rulebook that is included in the main game box, and is offered separately for those who want an extra copy, or want to check out the rules before buying the whole game.

NEW! The Rifter® #69 – February

Every issue of The Rifter® is an idea factory for players and Game Masters to generate new ideas and find new avenues of adventure. It provides useful, ready to go source material you can just drop into your ongoing games. A doorway to new possibilities and numerous Palladium role-playing worlds. And the many new characters, O.C.C.s, powers, magic, weapons, villains, monsters, adventures and ideas for one setting can be easily adapted to any Palladium setting. Every issue has material for Rifts® and at least 2-3 other Palladium game lines. And don’t forget, most of the material can be easily adapted for use in ANY Palladium game setting.

With 2015 being the 25th Anniversary of Rifts®, every issue of The Rifter® will feature a Rifts® inspired cover and contain at least one Rifts® article.

Bizantium and the Northern Islands™ will be sent to the printer in February, but probably won’t be available to ship until around March 12. The book is epic and will spark your imaginations and inspire adventures across the Island Kingdom, the Great Northern Wilderness and to little known realms like the Great Ice Shelf and Land of the Damned.

The Island Kingdom of Bizantium is a refuge for humans in a region known for its lack of humans as well as its vast wilderness, the Wolfen, monsters, and sea serpents. Bizantium’s impressive fleets of merchant vessels and warships travel the seas and oceans of the world. Its people are noble and heroic. The nation is a growing power in the rest of the world. Which is why other kingdoms, like the Western Empire, want to exert their influence on the throne of Bizantium. The result is that treachery and potential power grabs lurk in the shadows. That is but one small story transpiring in the kingdom of the North. Rebellion and war threaten the Shadow Coast colonies, impending war between the Wolfen and the Eastern Territory could erupt at any time, and ancient secrets, if unleashed, could change the fate of not just Bizantium, but the entire world. Meanwhile, dark forces gather in the icy waters beyond the kingdom, and an evil beyond human comprehension stirs.

New Waterchanter O.C.C. and 20+ magic spells new to the Fantasy setting.

Necromancy revisited. Many spells new to the Fantasy setting.

New sea serpents and the warrior sailors who hunt them.

Sea serpent generation tables to create your own sea monsters.

New monsters and animals of the Northern Sea.

Sea serpent ships! Dead sea serpents turned into deadly, massive warships (as depicted on the cover). They threaten sailors in the northern seas as well as the people of Bizantium and the mainland.

The Iceborn, a race of monsters who worship death, wield death magic, and hunt humanoids, eat their flesh, and wear their skin.

New O.C.C.s including the Serpent Chaser and Bizantium Marine.

New weapons and equipment for sailors, mariners, soldiers and adventurers at large.

New Bizantium ships including the Bireme, Ice Breaker and Battleship.

A time-line of the history of Bizantium and many mysteries.

Bizantian society, culture, religion, magic and notable places.

The Eoten of the Northern Islands, their mythology and influence.

The Northern Islands described in full, cities and geography, as well as threats to sailors in the Northern Sea and Sea of Despair.

Bizantium’s many shipyards, possibly the kingdom’s greatest asset.

Key figures of Bizantium and political intrigue.

The Noble Houses, Warlocks and foreign powers all trying to capture the throne of Bizantium for themselves!

Written by Glen Evans. Additional text by Matthew Clements and Kevin Siembieda.

Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines Sourcebook One

Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines sourcebook is set in space with the UEEF (United Earth Expeditionary Force) led by Admiral Rick Hunter. This valiant force of mecha-clad heroes travel across the galaxy liberating planets from the bondage of the Invid Regent, the Robotech Masters and other tyrants and monsters.

Rifts® Sourcebook – The Coalition States: Heroes of Humanity

The events unfolding in World Book 35: Megaverse® in Flames threaten to change the entire landscape of Rifts® Earth, as the demonic minions of Hades and Dyval seek to bring Hell on Earth and turn the planet into a dimensional gateway to Armageddon!

The Coalition States, along with Northern Gun and Lazlo, take the lead in the defense of North America. Heroes of Humanity explores the good and bad in the Coalition’s efforts to save humanity and send this new threat back to the pits of Hell.

New Coalition weapons, armor and war machines.

The Coalition States: Are they heroes or villains? Or does it depend on whether you are human or not?

Can the CS fight alongside mages and D-Bees if it means saving the world?

Rifts® Secrets of the Coalition States: The Disavowed

“Desperate times require desperate measures. War has nothing to do with morality or justice. It’s all about winning or dying. We cannot bind our hands with high ideals, even our own, or worry about the laws of renegade nations or the rights of alien people. We must fight fire with fire. And you are the match.” – Colonel Lyboc addressing a Disavowed team

The Disavowed are so Top Secret that their existence is known only to a handful of the Coalition States’ most elite, top echelon, with Joseph Prosek II the mastermind behind the Disavowed operation, and Colonel Lyboc its shadowy face. Find out who these men and women are. How the Disavowed get away with using magic, traveling to other parts of Rifts Earth and even to other dimensions in pursuit of enemies and strategic information that cannot be had through conventional means. Learn about the secret parameters in which these hard-boiled warriors, secretly hand-picked by Joseph Prosek II, operate, why almost every mission is considered a suicide mission, and why they must forever be the Disavowed.

CS operatives so secret that even the top military and political leaders right up to Emperor Prosek know nothing about them. And if they did know, would they condone their activity or condemn it?

Are the Disavowed heroes or renegades? Assassins or soldiers? Madmen or super-patriots? Or a little of them all?

Unsung heroes who keep the CS safe, or thugs and pawns of a shadow agency within the Coalition government?

What role does the Vanguard play in this group?

How do they reward their D-Bee “teammates” when the mission is over?

What happens to the Disavowed when they have seen or learned too much? Adventure ideas galore and so much more.

Rifts® Secrets of the Atlanteans

True Atlanteans are descendants from Earth’s past. The survivors of the sinking of Atlantis (really a dimensional mishap) and travelers of the Megaverse, wielders of Tattoo Magic and other lost mystic arts. Most people regard them as heroes, but are they? The Sunaj Assassins are mythic villains feared by all, yet they too are True Atlanteans who serve dark forces.

For the first time, much of the story behind True Atlanteans and their secrets are revealed.

True Atlanteans revisited.

Optional Atlantean character creation tables including clan heritage and other factors.

Secrets of the stone pyramids, different types/purposes and powers.

Many new magic tattoos, magic spells, weapons and armor.

Atlantean hideouts and secret communities across the Megaverse.

The Sunaj Assassins, their secrets, history and plans for the future.

Atlantean Monster Hunter O.C.C., Atlantean Defender O.C.C. and much more. And this is just the tip of what this book contains.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook: First Responders

The Great Cataclysm has devastated civilization, but humanity fights for survival. The struggles of civilian law enforcement, fire and rescue, and everyday men and women are some of the most epic tales to be told in a world gone to hell. They fight monsters, aliens, the paranormal, the elements, and each other, all with the hope of reclaiming their lives from the Chaos.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook: Resurrection

In the shattered depths of Wisconsin, survivors are besieged by the dead come back to life. Zombies. But not just any type of zombie, zombies done Rifts-style. And unless the source of the zombie plague can be found and neutralized by NEMA defenders, North America may be overrun by the dead.

This was actually something Taylor White and I have been kicking around for years, even before we released the Dead Reign® RPG line. We think you’ll love it.

Something has animated the dead in Wisconsin. It is up to NEMA heroes to find the cause and stop it before it spreads beyond control.

Plus Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Wave One and Wave Two releases worldwide. And there are still some secret projects and licenses yet to be revealed.

PDF downloads from DriveThruRPG.com

This is a great resource for getting out of print Palladium titles and other select books. We’ve made 100 titles available as PDF digital downloads from DriveThruRPG.com, as well as Fantasy Paper Miniatures, Game Master resources and other good things with more to come. This is a great way to try Palladium products and get access to out of print RPG source material. Some notable titles include:

UPDATE: The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive

The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive is going gangbusters! New subscribers and renewals are coming in at a good pace. It seems the unique and fun selection of FREE gift items are enticing a great many people into trying The Rifter®. That’s awesome because I think once you have, you will enjoy it. As I’ve mentioned, I think The Rifter® is an often overlooked gaming resource that has real value for players and G.M.s alike. The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive only happens once a year, and in addition to saving $16.00 off the retail price, you can get some cool free gifts, so take a look at it. Please keep the orders coming and enjoy.

Click here to see the full description for your subscription options and choice of free gift in the Palladium Online Store.

UPDATE: Bizantium and the Northern Islands™ – End of February release

I have been putting the majority of my time and effort into getting this book finished. I’m going much slower than I’d like, but this is a damn good book. The background, history, locations, O.C.C.s, monsters and just about everything has adventure hooks built into them. Good stuff. Artist Charles Walton saw a bunch of the material I was working on and was quite impressed with what he read. In fact, it got us talking about future material we’d like to see for Palladium Fantasy. Artist Ben Rodriguez has a lot of great ideas too. Wish I could incorporate them all into this book, but we need to wrap it up and get it to the darn printer!

UPDATE: The Rifter® – February Release

Wayne Smith is finishing up his selection of material for The Rifter® #69. And the rest of the art will be assigned over the weekend. I’m afraid this is another issue that has gotten pushed back as we focus on a bunch of other books and matters demanding our attention. Gaaahhh! But it is another great issue, and we’re already working on The Rifter® #70 as well.

UPDATE: Chaos Earth® Resurrection™ sourcebook – Spring release

I met with Chuck Walton on Wednesday to approve the tight pencils for Chaos Earth® Resurrection. Wow, does it look great. Glitter Boys getting swarmed in combat. I’ll see if I can get Wayne to post the pencil sketch in this Update. Chuck and I also discussed artwork for this title and a few other things. Man oh man, do we have great ideas for books. If only we all had more time in a day.

UPDATE: Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines™ Sourcebook

I have not had a chance to do anything new on this title yet, but I need to start assigning artwork for it next week. I want this book out in March. April at the latest.

UPDATE: Rifts® Book of Magic™ – Available now

The Rifts® Book of Magic™ has been selling well since coming back in stock last week. Of course, it is an outstanding resource for players and Game Masters alike with 850+ spells, 370+ magic items and MORE. Rifts® Book of Magic™ is a must if you are going to be playing characters from Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic™ (coming back in print this month), and magic spells will be of great use if you are playing the Minion War™ series. Rifts® magic is easily adapted to Palladium Fantasy®, Heroes Unlimited™ and other settings. Heck, a couple dozen Ocean Magic spells have made it into the Bizantium book.

UPDATE: Robotech® RPG Tactics™

Palladium continues to work on a number of things to support and promote Robotech® RPG Tactics™, including an ongoing FAQ to be posted online, color and paint guides, “step by step” detailed instructions for building the game pieces, and many other useful tools and information for your gaming enjoyment. We have also been doing a bunch of stuff to make the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ premiere appearance at AdeptiCon an outstanding one.

FREE Robotech® RPG Tactics Paint Guide Resource now available on DriveThruRPG.com. This is a pair of PDFs of Robotech® mecha presented as black and white line art as well as in various color schemes. They are a) for your reference, and b) for you to use to create your own color schemes on the computer before you paint.

Australia & Europe Shipping Updates. The container with the rewards for Australian backers is finally getting loaded onto the ship and setting sail this weekend! Meanwhile, the ship carrying European backers’ rewards has passed through the Panama Canal and is currently chugging its way through the Caribbean. Oddly enough, the ship heading for Europe will dock in Savannah, Georgia on Sunday, and the ship heading for Australia will dock in Savannah in Monday. The two could actually be in port at the same time, as they pass each other on their respective routes.

UPDATE: AdeptiCon – March 19-22, 2015, Chicago – www.adepticon.org

Preparations continue for AdeptiCon. We bagged up 1,000 Valkyrie sprues (two battloids) with the color advertisement card that goes with it for the AdeptiCon swag bags. The package looks fantastic. I also selected some hardcover gold editions to donate for the Charity Auction and wrote the descriptions for all of it. The color 10% discount coupon is also printed and waiting to go out to the AdeptiCon people. Getting very excited about this event. http://www.adepticon.org

Wayne whipped up a banner for Robotech® RPG Tactics™ and an animated Palladium Books logo for the AdeptiCon website – the latter is compliments of the incredible Apollo Okamura who has dabbled with, and taught classes on, animation. Nice. We’ll be adding it to the Palladium website (along with other changes) in the future. Right now, the animated logo can be seen in the Complete List of AdeptiCon Sponsors.

Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Tournament at AdeptiCon – www.adepticon.org

We’ve been told that the more of you who register for this event, the bigger it will become, so please join the fun. AdeptiCon will offer an official Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Tournament. It is Robotech® RPG Tactics™: Battle for Macross City™. Here are the highlights:

This tournament will be 300 points and have several games with fantastic scenarios.

Each table shall be a beautiful custom creation, for a unique gaming experience.

Five different awards will ensure that no matter what aspect of the hobby you are most interested in, there is an award that will be for you.

This tourney is for all levels of players, from first time tournament and convention attendants to the seasoned gamer.

If you find yourself in the Chicagoland area, we would love for you to sign up, stop by and say hello and meet a group of people who have the same interests as you. Even if you are unlikely to play, we would be happy to meet everyone. Come join the fun, fast-paced game of Robotech® RPG Tactics™. Slots are limited!

Wayne has added some Robotech® RPG Tactics™ supplemental material including four game cards and the mecha painting/color design templates.

The FREE Robotech® RPG Tactics Paint Guide Resource. The color guide in the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ rule book contains several classic paint schemes from the Robotech® universe, providing different visual options for every unit in the game. Ah, but what about those of you who want to create your own paint schemes? Use these PDFs as work sheets to create your paint schemes and unique designs on the computer before you go to paint the actual game pieces.

Each of the PDFs provided contains the templates created by artist Jeffrey Burke for the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ rule book. They are in a digital format so that you can colorize and alter them using Photoshop, Paint, or almost any other graphics program to work out and test your original squadron designs. For your convenience, we included the color art as well as black and white “blank” versions of each unit for those of you who want to start from the ground up.

Test out your paint schemes, see how units look next to each other, and get a feel for how your army will look before you break out the paintbrushes. Enjoy.

Much, much more is coming in the weeks ahead. We plan to add a bunch of new material to DriveThruRPG.com over the next several weeks, so keep an eye on it. DriveThruRPG.com already offers 90+ Palladium Books titles available as PDFs with more to be made available soon. They currently include the Coalition Wars®/Siege on Tolkeen™ series, Splicers® RPG, The Rifter® issues #1-58 (with more being added soon), and first edition rules of the Rifts® RPG, Beyond the Supernatural™ RPG, Heroes Unlimited™ RPG, The Palladium Fantasy RPG®, and related 1st edition sourcebooks for each. And more! Like what? Like Fantasy Paper Miniatures and Game Master Kits for digital download. They are available only as PDF files and were designed special to help you run your games and build campaigns. There are also sneak previews of books and other good stuff. Check it out! And let other gamers know they are available too. We’ll be making more available on DriveThruRPG.com in the weeks and months to come. So take a look on a regular basis.

UPDATE: 2015 Palladium Open House (POH) – May 15-17, 2015 – at the Palladium warehouse in Westland, Michigan

The VIP Thursday tickets went on sale Sunday, February 1, and have been selling fast. I think only about a dozen of the 40 slots that had been held back remain available on a first come, first served basis. Note that even after we sell out, you can put your name on a waiting list in case there are cancellations.

Please “reserve” your hotel rooms NOW. It helps Palladium immensely. Likewise, please order your admissions sooner than later so we know how many gaming events to schedule.

● Approximately 30 Palladium Creators have confirmed they will be at the Open House.

● TIME SENSITIVE: Reserve your rooms soon for the 2015 Open House Hotel! Your credit card will NOT be charged until May, so there is no reason not to play it safe and reserve your room. Note: Hotels within a 20 mile area WILL BE BOOKED due to a sporting event the same weekend. You need to RESERVE YOUR ROOM TODAY or the next available hotel may be 20+ miles away. Seriously!

Comfort Inn

40455 Ann Arbor RoadPlymouth, MI 48170Phone: 734-455-8100

Group Code: Palladium Books – you MUST request the Group Code “Palladium Books” at the time of booking to ensure the correct rate will be quoted and billed to you.

Dates of the 2015 Palladium Open House (POH): May 15-17 (May 14 is VIP Thursday), 2015. $109.00 (plus tax) per night for two queen beds or one king with a sofa that has a pull-out sleeper. ALL rooms have a microwave & fridge and FREE high-speed wired/wireless Internet. The hotel also offers a FREE hot breakfast from 6 A.M. to 10 A.M. near the lobby, heated indoor swimming pool, a fitness center (24 hours), and a coin operated laundry. If you know you are coming to the 2015 Palladium Open House, we recommend you reserve your room today. Important Note: You MUST give them the Group Code: Palladium Books to get this rate. Call 734-455-8100 to make your reservation. The hotel does NOT charge your credit card until a few days before the event and you can cancel up to May 10, 2015. So there is no reason to wait.

● 2015 POH Game Masters needed. Run 3+ games and get our new G.M. T-shirt FREE (unveiled for the first time at the POH) and a 30% discount on Palladium’s RPG books, T-shirts and most other items (sorry, excludes original art, limited editions, art prints, auction items and Robotech® RPG Tactics). We need plenty of games to satisfy 300 gamers. Your help is appreciated and welcomed. Contact us by telephone (734-721-2903) or by email at palladium-gm@palladiumbooks.com.

For more info and to purchase tickets to the Palladium Open House, click here.

Gen Con Indy – July 30 to August 2, 2015

The important thing right now is we NEED Game Masters who plan to run Palladium events to contact Palladium Books and/or Gen Con game coordinator NMI with information about your games. We need your game info as soon as possible to get your games registered and in the Gen Con program book and online pre-reg. Getting the games listed in the Gen Con Games Pre-Registration is vital to get the outstanding showing we saw at last year’s Gen Con. PLEASE get us ALL game information by mid-February to make it into the online pre-reg.

Send your game descriptions in to the Palladium Megaversal Ambassadors pronto at ambassadors@palladiumbooks.com; or by telephone (734-721-2903). We are also looking for volunteers familiar with RRT and wargames to run demos of Robotech® RPG Tactics™ in the miniatures area of Gen Con.

So much to do . . .

I’ve been coordinating a number of projects and taking care of various business matters, but most of my attention this week has been on getting Bizantium finished and to the printer. Will continue to do so. In fact, I was going over the Random Sea Serpent Creation Tables when I had to stop to write this Update. I’ll be jumping right back into them as soon as I’m done. Sheesh, there is just so much to do on so many fronts, and everything seems to take too much time. Been so busy, I’ve only posted one Murmur from the Megaverse® this week so far, but more are coming. Stay positive and game on.

– Kevin Siembieda, Game Designer, Writer, Publisher

Rifts® Book of Magic – Back in Print – Available now

Rifts® Book of Magic is 352 pages of nothing but magic – 850+ spells, 370+ magic items, including Rune Weapons, Techno-Wizard items, Bio-Wizard Splugorth creations, and Iron Juggernauts, and more. That’s cover to cover spells and magic items and a few related odds and ends like Atlantean Tattoos and the Nazca Lines. Everything collected from the first 23 World Books, Sourcebooks 1-4, and Siege on Tolkeen 1-6 into one giant reference of magical goodness.

Optional rules & clarification on magic and more. Note: It is a vital reference for Rifts® Chaos Earth™, Rifts® Federation of Magic, the Rifts® China books and all Rifts® titles. Furthermore, spells and most magic items are easy to adapt to world settings like Palladium Fantasy® and Heroes Unlimited™. Don’t get caught without it.

The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive – Low Price – Free Gift

It only happens once a year – for a limited time – The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive. We want people to discover The Rifter® as a valuable resource, so we are offering the biggest selection of FREE gifts ever as an enticement. Gamers already familiar with The Rifter® always jump at this offer. That’s because, even when late, The Rifter® has been so consistently good, it is hard to say no to the Super-Subscription Drive.

The free gift is always a nice incentive, and this year the selection is truly unique and fun. I have dug through the Palladium archives to make a number of out of print titles and “special” items available. For us, gaming is all about friends and fun, so enjoy and have fun. Note: The early issues of The Rifter® are limited and available only while supplies last. Please keep the orders coming and enjoy.

Here are four reasons (and 7 gift choices) why this is the perfect time to try The Rifter® or renew your subscription:

1. Save $16 off retail and each issue is delivered right to your door.

3. Order during the Super-Subscription Drive to lock in your low, low subscription price for the next year.

4. The Rifter® has been outstanding and is the place to find regular source material for Beyond the Supernatural™, Palladium Fantasy®, Splicers®, and Heroes Unlimited™ and other settings. And future issues will have more playing and G.M. tips.

If you haven’t taken a look at The Rifter® lately (if ever), I suggest you try an issue. The Rifter® is an excellent source of ideas, characters, monsters, villains, powers, magic and adventures for your own game. Even articles designed for settings you don’t play are likely to offer ideas and material you can easily modify and incorporate into your campaign. In fact, drawing on concepts from outside the usual setting can spice up your game and keep players guessing. The Rifter® is a great tool for that. That’s the beauty of the Palladium Megaversal Game System; you can often take characters, gear and ideas from one world setting and drop them into ANY of the other settings with no or little work. Other times, the amount of modification is minimal to make it work in a different setting. That means a monster from Palladium Fantasy® can be easily used as a monster, mutant or alien in Heroes Unlimited™, After the Bomb®,Robotech®, Rifts®, Nightbane®,The Mechanoids®, Chaos Earth® or Splicers®, and vice versa. What needs to be adjusted? Perhaps just changing Hit Points/S.D.C. and damage to Mega-Damage, or M.D.C. and M.D. to Hit Points/S.D.C., or some other minor tweak.

Characters from Heroes Unlimited™ and After the Bomb® can be from the future, or the past (depending on the setting), or they can be mutants, or aliens, or beings from another or parallel world. As I am so wont to say, you are limited only by your imagination. The same holds true for towns, cities and adventures – use that place and the adventure ideas tailored to a different setting. Sure you may have to swap out monsters and treasure, or adjust motives, but you might be surprised how easy, fun and different that adventure plays out in a different world environment. And The Rifter® is the ultimate source for alternative, new and different ideas, adventures, characters, and story ideas. All of which can be tweaked to fit most settings, as can optional rules. The Rifter® is a factory for alternative ideas.

The Rifter® Super-Subscription Offer is your chance to try The Rifter® at a discount price and get a FREE gift. Offer ENDS February 28, 2015.

Click here to see the full description for your subscription options and choice of free gift in the Palladium Online Store.

Robotech® RPG Tactics™ – Available now in the USA and Canada – coming to other parts of the world soon

You need to check out this exciting new game. Beautiful, detailed game pieces of your favorite Robotech® mecha, and fast playing rules that capture the Robotech® experience. And this is just the beginning. We have so much more planned. Available in game stores across the USA and Canada.

● Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Boxed Set (Main Box Game) – Cat. No. 55100 – $99.95 retail price. This is the game Robotech® fans have wanted for decades. Robotech® RPG Tactics™ is a fast-paced, tabletop combat game that captures the action and adventure of the Robotech® anime. Two or more players can engage in small squad skirmishes or scale up to massive battles. Relive the clashes of the First Robotech War, engage in stand-alone tactical games, or use the dynamic game pieces to enhance your Robotech® RPG experience. Or simply collect your favorite mecha from an expanding range of top-notch game pieces.

The First Six Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Expansion Packs are available to retail along with the main box game. Here are the SKUs and retail prices.

● Battle Foam Robotech® RPG Tactics™ bag/carrying case – Cat. No. 55107 – $120.00 retail (limited supply). Note: We only have about 50 Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Battle Foam bags available. Once they are sold out it will be months before we manufacture more, if ever.

● Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook – Cat. No. 55105 – $20.00 retail. Note: This is the same rulebook that is included in the main game box, and is offered separately for those who want an extra copy, or want to check out the rules before buying the whole game.

NEW! The Rifter® #69 – February

Every issue of The Rifter® is an idea factory for players and Game Masters to generate new ideas and find new avenues of adventure. It provides useful, ready to go source material you can just drop into your ongoing games. A doorway to new possibilities and numerous Palladium role-playing worlds. And the many new characters, O.C.C.s, powers, magic, weapons, villains, monsters, adventures and ideas for one setting can be easily adapted to any Palladium setting. Every issue has material for Rifts® and at least 2-3 other Palladium game lines. And don’t forget, most of the material can be easily adapted for use in ANY Palladium game setting.

With 2015 being the 25th Anniversary of Rifts®, every issue of The Rifter® will feature a Rifts® inspired cover and contain at least one Rifts® article.

Rise of Magic™ – Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook – February

The reason this book kept getting pushed back is that it is not a simple reprint. We had many corrections to make and the entire book has to be re-typeset and laid out like a new book. Art had to be found and scanned. Well, we will have it to the printer soon and in your hands by the end of January or early February.

The return of magic has empowered humans with strange and wondrous powers unlike anything quite yet seen (and different from most conventional types of magic). This only complicates things for Earth’s defenders as the line of distinction between “good guys” and “bad guys” begins to blur.

Bizantium and the Northern Islands™ will not be ready to ship until February. The writing has been a little rougher than I expected, but really I have been pulled away to handle a great many other things. I continue to clear my plate and expect to give it the majority of my attention over the next two weeks. All the artwork is in, and looks fantastic.

Journey to the Island Kingdom of Bizantium, situated at the far northern peak of the Palladium World. Its vast fleets of merchant vessels and warships travel the high seas and bring untold wealth back to the kingdom, as well as exotic goods, people, customs, weapons and foreign magic. As foreign powers exert their influence on the throne, treachery and potential power grabs lurk in the shadows.

New Waterchanter O.C.C. and 20+ magic spells new to the Fantasy setting.

New Sea Serpents and the warrior sailors who hunt them.

Sea Serpent generation table to create your own sea monsters.

New animals of the North Sea and Sea of Despair.

Sea Serpent ships! Dead serpents turned into deadly, massive attack ships (as depicted on the cover). And the forgotten race who creates these ships and threatens sailors in the Northern seas.

New O.C.C.s including the Serpent Chaser and Bizantium Marine.

New weapons and equipment for sailors, mariners, soldiers and adventurers at large.

New Bizantium ships including the Bireme, Ice Breaker and Battleship.

Full time-line of the history of Bizantium.

Bizantian society, culture, religion and magic.

The Eoten of the Northern Islands, their mythology and influence.

The Northern Islands described in full, cities and geography, as well as threats to sailors in the North Sea and Sea of Despair.

Bizantium’s many shipyards, possibly the kingdom’s greatest asset.

Key figures of Bizantium and political intrigue.

The Noble Houses, Warlocks and foreign powers all trying to capture the throne of Bizantium for themselves!

Written by Glen Evans. Additional text by Matthew Clements and Kevin Siembieda.

Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines Sourcebook One

Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines sourcebook is set in space with the UEEF (United Earth Expeditionary Force) led by Admiral Rick Hunter. This valiant force of mecha-clad heroes travel across the galaxy liberating planets from the bondage of the Invid Regent, the Robotech Masters and other tyrants and monsters.

Rifts® Sourcebook – The Coalition States: Heroes of Humanity

The events unfolding in World Book 35: Megaverse® in Flames threaten to change the entire landscape of Rifts® Earth, as the demonic minions of Hades and Dyval seek to bring Hell on Earth and turn the planet into a dimensional gateway to Armageddon!

The Coalition States, along with Northern Gun and Lazlo, take the lead in the defense of North America. Heroes of Humanity explores the good and bad in the Coalition’s efforts to save humanity and send this new threat back to the pits of Hell.

New Coalition weapons, armor and war machines.

The Coalition States: Are they heroes or villains? Or does it depend on whether you are human or not?

Can the CS fight alongside mages and D-Bees if it means saving the world?

Rifts® Secrets of the Coalition States: The Disavowed

“Desperate times require desperate measures. War has nothing to do with morality or justice. It’s all about winning or dying. We cannot bind our hands with high ideals, even our own, or worry about the laws of renegade nations or the rights of alien people. We must fight fire with fire. And you are the match.” – Colonel Lyboc addressing a Disavowed team

The Disavowed are so Top Secret that their existence is known only to a handful of the Coalition States’ most elite, top echelon, with Joseph Prosek II the mastermind behind the Disavowed operation, and Colonel Lyboc its shadowy face. Find out who these men and women are. How the Disavowed get away with using magic, traveling to other parts of Rifts Earth and even to other dimensions in pursuit of enemies and strategic information that cannot be had through conventional means. Learn about the secret parameters in which these hard-boiled warriors, secretly hand-picked by Joseph Prosek II, operate, why almost every mission is considered a suicide mission, and why they must forever be the Disavowed.

CS operatives so secret that even the top military and political leaders right up to Emperor Prosek know nothing about them. And if they did know, would they condone their activity or condemn it?

Are the Disavowed heroes or renegades? Assassins or soldiers? Madmen or super-patriots? Or a little of them all?

Unsung heroes who keep the CS safe, or thugs and pawns of a shadow agency within the Coalition government?

What role does the Vanguard play in this group?

How do they reward their D-Bee “teammates” when the mission is over?

What happens to the Disavowed when they have seen or learned too much? Adventure ideas galore and so much more.

Rifts® Secrets of the Atlanteans

True Atlanteans are descendants from Earth’s past. The survivors of the sinking of Atlantis (really a dimensional mishap) and travelers of the Megaverse, wielders of Tattoo Magic and other lost mystic arts. Most people regard them as heroes, but are they? The Sunaj Assassins are mythic villains feared by all, yet they too are True Atlanteans who serve dark forces.

For the first time, much of the story behind True Atlanteans and their secrets are revealed.

True Atlanteans revisited.

Optional Atlantean character creation tables including clan heritage and other factors.

Secrets of the stone pyramids, different types/purposes and powers.

Many new magic tattoos, magic spells, weapons and armor.

Atlantean hideouts and secret communities across the Megaverse.

The Sunaj Assassins, their secrets, history and plans for the future.

Atlantean Monster Hunter O.C.C., Atlantean Defender O.C.C. and much more. And this is just the tip of what this book contains.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook: First Responders

The Great Cataclysm has devastated civilization, but humanity fights for survival. The struggles of civilian law enforcement, fire and rescue, and everyday men and women are some of the most epic tales to be told in a world gone to hell. They fight monsters, aliens, the paranormal, the elements, and each other, all with the hope of reclaiming their lives from the Chaos.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook: Resurrection

In the shattered depths of Wisconsin, survivors are besieged by the dead come back to life. Zombies. But not just any type of zombie, zombies done Rifts-style. And unless the source of the zombie plague can be found and neutralized by NEMA defenders, North America may be overrun by the dead.

This was actually something Taylor White and I have been kicking around for years, even before we released the Dead Reign® RPG line. We think you’ll love it.

Something has animated the dead in Wisconsin. It is up to NEMA heroes to find the cause and stop it before it spreads beyond control.

Plus Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Wave One and Wave Two releases worldwide. And there are still some secret projects and licenses yet to be revealed.

PDF downloads from DriveThruRPG.com

This is a great resource for getting out of print Palladium titles and other select books. We’ve made 100 titles available as PDF digital downloads from DriveThruRPG.com, as well as Fantasy Paper Miniatures, Game Master resources and other good things with more to come. This is a great way to try Palladium products and get access to out of print RPG source material. Some notable titles include:

LAST CHANCE to Get These Titles at a Discounted Price. Heroes Unlimited™ 30th Anniversary Gold and Palladium Fantasy® 30th Anniversary Elemental Green Hardcover – increase to $50.00 this Sunday

The low, low price of $40.00 for the two 30th Anniversary editions was done as part of the anniversary celebration. With the New Year and a new anniversary, we will increase the price to $50.00 price each this Sunday, February 1, 2015. This will put the HU2 and Fantasy special hardcover editions in line with most of our other Gold Editions, past and present. Fair warning – this is your last chance to make purchases at the $40 price.

UPDATE: Rifts® Book of Magic™ – Available now

The Rifts® Book of Magic™ arrived Wednesday afternoon, a couple days early. Those of you who had standing orders have shipped. Those of you meaning to pick up a copy, the book is back in!

850+ spells, 370+ magic items and MORE. Talk about a great resource. Rifts® Book of Magic™ is a must if you are going to be playing characters from Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic™ (coming back in print next month), and magic will be flying if you’re playing the Minion War™ series.

And remember, you can easily convert the spells and magic items to any world setting where magic is appropriate. In Palladium Fantasy® the magic could be uncommon spells known to but a few (like the player characters), or a boon from a grateful deity or powerful mage, magic rediscovered from the Time of a Thousand Magicks, spells known to specific guilds or cults, or monsters like the Sylvan or Mummy Immortalus, etc. Certainly ancient and forgotten (and forbidden!) magicks are still practiced in the Land of the Damned and known in dark corners of the Palladium World. Likewise, spells and magic items dropped into Heroes Unlimited™ could broaden the scope of many a magic based hero, or be unique to an alien visitor or other being. Unleash your imaginations and have fun. Rifts® Book of Magic™ is more useful than ever.

UPDATE: Chaos Earth® Rise of Magic – February release

We hope to get this fan favorite finished and to the printer in a week or two for a February release.

UPDATE: Bizantium & the Northern Islands™ – Ships February, 2015

Rewrites and editing continue as I bounce back and forth between work on Bizantium and the Northern Islands™ and Chaos Earth® Resurrection. I’ve done spot editing and writing on both titles, but have been most focused on finishing Bizantium™ when I’m not being dragged away to deal with other matters.

Bizantium and the Northern Islands™ by Glen Evans is very much a “World Book” with details about the Island Kingdom, its history, people, society, mysteries and intrigue. There is a lot you don’t know about Bizantium, and you’re gonna love what there is to discover. I think one of the big surprises will be what is, in effect, a new continent of sorts – the Northern Ice Shelf – often referred as a place of “death and ice.” Plus some new O.C.C.s like the Serpent Chaser and Waterchanter, magic, monsters, the villainous Iceborn, and a lot of hooks for adventures. The more I read, the more excited I am about this book. Additional writing and ideas by Matthew Clements and me (Kevin Siembieda).

UPDATE: The Rifter® #69 – February, 2015 release

Wayne continues working on and making his final selections for The Rifter® #69. Grrr, I still need to assign the artwork. Maybe tomorrow. The Rifter® #69 will include material for After the Bomb®, Rifts® and other settings. Don’t forget that most material can be easily adapted from one setting to another.

UPDATE: The Rifter® #70 – Spring release

I met with Chuck Walton on Monday and approved his tight pencils for the cover of The Rifter® #70. It is very dynamic.

UPDATE: Chaos Earth® Resurrection – Spring release

During that Monday meeting with Chuck Walton I also approved the rough concept sketch for Chaos Earth® Resurrection. Chuck and I discussed the changes and elements to really capture the content of this action-packed and horror filled adventure sourcebook. Chuck has also committed to doing the majority of the artwork for it. I look forward to seeing the new pencils next week.

Chaos Earth® Resurrection is a big adventure sourcebook with a horror and survival theme. It introduces a terrifying menace and villain for NEMA defenders to battle, but also one with long-lasting consequences that could stretch into the present day Rifts® setting or be carried to other dimensions.

UPDATE: Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines™ Sourcebook

I am looking at manuscripts of upcoming books and assigning art for several of them at the same time in an effort to get product out faster. I want Palladium to pump out new releases for several game lines more rapidly like we did in the good ol’ days when there would be 10-16 new releases a year. I expect to start assigning artwork for Robotech® Marines by the end of next week. I want this book out in March. April at the latest.

UPDATE: Available now! New additional products and freebies on DriveThruRPG.com

Wayne has added two additional issues of The Rifter® on DriveThruRPG.com and started to add Robotech® RPG Tactics™ material, including game cards and painting/color design guides. If the RRT material isn’t available as you read this, it will be over the weekend, with much, much more coming in the weeks ahead. We plan to add a bunch of new material to DriveThruRPG.com over the next several weeks, so keep an eye on it. DriveThruRPG.com already offers 90+ Palladium Books titles available as PDFs with more to be made available in the coming weeks. They currently include the Coalition Wars®/Siege on Tolkeen™ series, Splicers® RPG, The Rifter® issues #1-58 (with more being added soon), and first edition rules of the Rifts® RPG, Beyond the Supernatural™ RPG, Heroes Unlimited™ RPG, The Palladium Fantasy RPG®, and related 1st edition sourcebooks for each. And more! Like what? Like Fantasy Paper Miniatures and Game Master Kits for digital download. They are available only as PDF files and were designed special to help you run your games and build campaigns. There are also sneak previews of books and other good stuff. Check it out! And let other gamers know they are available too. We’ll be making more available on DriveThru in the weeks and months to come. So take a look on a regular basis.

UPDATE: Robotech® RPG Tactics™

Palladium is working on a number things to support and promote Robotech® RPG Tactics™, including an ongoing FAQ to be posted online, color and paint guides, “step by step” detailed instructions for building the game pieces and many other useful tools and information for your gaming enjoyment.

The container with the rewards for European backers was finally loaded on its ship this past weekend, and set sail on Monday morning. She should be passing through the Panama Canal early next week, and is currently scheduled to reach the UK around February 20.

We loaded up a 20-foot container full of Australian backer rewards on Thursday last week, and it is en route to the port. Ironically, in order to avoid the West Coast port congestion that plagued the container headed to Europe, the Australia container will be shipping out of New York. Its ship, the Corcovado, is scheduled to set sail from New York on February 8, and to reach Sydney four weeks later. That’s subject to weather and other delays, of course. We’ll keep an eye on things and update you if anything changes.

UPDATE: Advertising and promoting

Worked on more convention and promotional stuff this week, along with what feels like a million other things. You can help with promotion. Seriously, talk up RRT, Robotech®, Rifts®, Palladium Fantasy®, and attending the Palladium Open House (hope to see a lot gamers there and at AdeptiCon and Gen Con Indy, too), and other Palladium games, settings and news you enjoy. Positive buzz creates excitement and helps us to sell and produce more of the games you want to see.

We have been doing a lot of prep for our participation at AdeptiCon. As noted previously, Palladium will be contributing to the swag bags and charity auction, and offering a special booth coupon, as well as bringing Robotech® RPG Tactics™ products and a selection of Robotech®, Rifts® and other RPG books to sell. Wayne Smith, Jeff Burke, and myself will be present to chat, answer questions, and have fun. There will be at least one Robotech® RPG Tactics™ tournament (described below), and we continue to look for additional volunteers to run RRT demos or other tournaments. If that might be you, please contact us immediately at ambassadors@palladiumbooks.com or by telephone (734-721-2903) and we will get your event added to the schedule. Thank you! We’ll keep you posted if we add any special events or convention exclusives. We hope to see many of you there. http://www.adepticon.org

We’ve been told that the more of you who register for this event, the bigger it will become, so please join the fun. AdeptiCon will offer an official Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Tournament. It is Robotech® RPG Tactics™: Battle for Macross Island™. Here are the highlights:

This tournament will be 300 points and have several games with fantastic scenarios.

Each table shall be a beautiful custom creation, for a unique gaming experience.

Five different awards will ensure that no matter what aspect of the hobby you are most interested in, there is an award that will be for you.

This tourney is for all levels of players, from first time tournament and convention attendants to the seasoned gamer.

If you find yourself in the Chicagoland area, we would love for you to sign up, stop by and say hello and meet a group of people who have the same interests as you. Even if you are unlikely to play, we would be happy to meet everyone. Come join the fun, fast-paced game of Robotech® RPG Tactics™. Slots are limited!

There will be three, two hour Robotech® RPG Tactics™ games, and an all day, Massive Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Space Battle which will last for 8 hours with new players joining the battle all day long. The action takes place on an 18x18 foot space map created by Peter Pidrak. In one corner, there will be a scale Zentraedi Scout ship that will be launching Reconnaissance, Attack, and Attrition Squadrons of Battlepods. In the other corner will be waves of UEDF Valkyries flying in to stop the alien invaders. This big RRT event will be running all day, with new players joining throughout. When a player’s unit is destroyed, the player can choose a new unit and keep fighting, or walk away and let someone new play. Sounds like a cool event to us. http://www.arcticon.webs.com

Gen Con Indy – July 30 to August 2, 2015

We’ll be there. You’ll be there. Game Masters who plan to run events NEED to contact Palladium Books and/or Gen Con game coordinators Victor Peterson and NMI with information about your games. We need your game info as soon as possible to get your games registered and in the Gen Con program book and online pre-reg. Getting the games listed in the Gen Con Games Pre-Registration is vital to get the outstanding showing we saw at last year’s Gen Con. PLEASE get us ALL game information by mid-February to make into the online pre-reg.

Send your game descriptions in to the Palladium Megaversal Ambassadors pronto at ambassadors@palladiumbooks.com; or by telephone (734-721-2903). We are also looking for volunteers familiar with RRT and wargames to run demos of Robotech® RPG Tactics™ in the miniatures area of Gen Con.

UPDATE: 2015 Palladium Open House (POH) – May 15-17, 2015 – at the Palladium warehouse in Westland, Michigan

VIP Thursday tickets for the Palladium Open House will be available on Sunday, February 1. The 40 slots that had been held back will be released on Sunday. Available on a first come, first served basis. A number of you have called this week inquiring, so I wanted to make this news was the first thing mentioned here.

Have you ordered your admission tickets and “reserved” your hotel room? What are you waiting for? Nonstop Palladium gaming for three days (four for those coming to VIP Thursday). A lot of Palladium Creators have confirmed they are coming, see below. MORE updates and details to be posted in the next week or two.

● More VIP Thursday tickets go on sale February 1, 2015. These are the last remaining tickets for this exclusive event. I believe there are around 40 slots left. Sold on a first come first served basis.

● Approximately 30 Palladium Creators have confirmed they will be at the Open House.

● TIME SENSITIVE: Reserve your rooms soon for the 2015 Open House Hotel! Your reserving your hotel room today helps Palladium in a number of ways and secures the limited space for all of you in attendance. Your credit card will NOT be charged until May, so there is no reason not to play it safe and reserve your room. Note: Hotels within a 20 mile area WILL BE BOOKED due to a sporting event the same weekend. You need to RESERVE YOUR ROOM TODAY or the next available hotel may be 20+ miles away. Seriously!

Comfort Inn

40455 Ann Arbor RoadPlymouth, MI 48170Phone: 734-455-8100

Group Code: Palladium Books – you MUST request the Group Code “Palladium Books” at the time of booking to ensure the correct rate will be quoted and billed to you.

Dates of the 2015 Palladium Open House (POH): May 15-17 (May 14 is VIP Thursday), 2015. $109.00 (plus tax) per night for two queen beds or one king with a sofa that has a pull-out sleeper. ALL rooms have a microwave & fridge and FREE high-speed wired/wireless Internet. The hotel also offers a FREE hot breakfast from 6 A.M. to 10 A.M. near the lobby, heated indoor swimming pool, a fitness center (24 hours), and a coin operated laundry. If you know you are coming to the 2015 Palladium Open House, we recommend you reserve your room today. Important Note: You MUST give them the Group Code: Palladium Books to get this rate. Call 734-455-8100 to make your reservation. The hotel does NOT charge your credit card until a few days before the event and you can cancel up to May 10, 2015. So there is no reason to wait.

● 2015 POH Game Masters needed. Run 3+ games and get our new G.M. T-shirt FREE (unveiled for the first time at the POH) and a 30% discount on Palladium’s RPG books, T-shirts and most other items (sorry, excludes original art, limited editions, art prints, auction items and Robotech® RPG Tactics). We need plenty of games to satisfy 300 gamers. Your help is appreciated and welcomed. Contact us by telephone (734-721-2903) or by email at palladium-gm@palladiumbooks.com.

For more info and to purchase tickets to the Palladium Open House, click here.

More Murmurs

Weekly Updates are good, but not enough. I have vowed to myself to try to post many more Murmurs than I've been doing. Three went up this week! Will do my best to keep posting more on a regular and frequent basis.

– Kevin Siembieda, Game Designer, Writer, Publisher

Rifts® Book of Magic – Back in Print – Available now

Rifts® Book of Magic is 352 pages of nothing but magic – 850+ spells, 370+ magic items, including Rune Weapons, Techno-Wizard items, Bio-Wizard Splugorth creations, and Iron Juggernauts, and more. That’s cover to cover spells and magic items and a few related odds and ends like Atlantean Tattoos and the Nazca Lines. Everything collected from the first 23 World Books, Sourcebooks 1-4, and Siege on Tolkeen 1-6 into one giant reference of magical goodness.

Optional rules & clarification on magic and more. Note: It is a vital reference for Rifts® Chaos Earth™, Rifts® Federation of Magic, the Rifts® China books and all Rifts® titles. Furthermore, spells and most magic items are easy to adapt to world settings like Palladium Fantasy® and Heroes Unlimited™. Don’t get caught without it.

The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive – Low Price – Free Gift

It only happens once a year – for a limited time – The Rifter® Super-Subscription Drive. We want people to discover The Rifter® as a valuable resource, so we are offering the biggest selection of FREE gifts ever as an enticement. Gamers already familiar with The Rifter® always jump at this offer. That’s because, even when late, The Rifter® has been so consistently good, it is hard to say no to the Super-Subscription Drive.

The free gift is always a nice incentive, and this year the selection is truly unique and fun. I have dug through the Palladium archives to make a number of out of print titles and “special” items available. For us, gaming is all about friends and fun, so enjoy and have fun. Note: The early issues of The Rifter® are limited and available only while supplies last. Please keep the orders coming and enjoy.

Here are four reasons (and 7 gift choices) why this is the perfect time to try The Rifter® or renew your subscription:

1. Save $16 off retail and each issue is delivered right to your door.

3. Order during the Super-Subscription Drive to lock in your low, low subscription price for the next year.

4. The Rifter® has been outstanding and is the place to find regular source material for Beyond the Supernatural™, Palladium Fantasy®, Splicers®, and Heroes Unlimited™ and other settings. And future issues will have more playing and G.M. tips.

If you haven’t taken a look at The Rifter® lately (if ever), I suggest you try an issue. The Rifter® is an excellent source of ideas, characters, monsters, villains, powers, magic and adventures for your own game. Even articles designed for settings you don’t play are likely to offer ideas and material you can easily modify and incorporate into your campaign. In fact, drawing on concepts from outside the usual setting can spice up your game and keep players guessing. The Rifter® is a great tool for that. That’s the beauty of the Palladium Megaversal Game System; you can often take characters, gear and ideas from one world setting and drop them into ANY of the other settings with no or little work. Other times, the amount of modification is minimal to make it work in a different setting. That means a monster from Palladium Fantasy® can be easily used as a monster, mutant or alien in Heroes Unlimited™, After the Bomb®,Robotech®, Rifts®, Nightbane®,The Mechanoids®, Chaos Earth® or Splicers®, and vice versa. What needs to be adjusted? Perhaps just changing Hit Points/S.D.C. and damage to Mega-Damage, or M.D.C. and M.D. to Hit Points/S.D.C., or some other minor tweak.

Characters from Heroes Unlimited™ and After the Bomb® can be from the future, or the past (depending on the setting), or they can be mutants, or aliens, or beings from another or parallel world. As I am so wont to say, you are limited only by your imagination. The same holds true for towns, cities and adventures – use that place and the adventure ideas tailored to a different setting. Sure you may have to swap out monsters and treasure, or adjust motives, but you might be surprised how easy, fun and different that adventure plays out in a different world environment. And The Rifter® is the ultimate source for alternative, new and different ideas, adventures, characters, and story ideas. All of which can be tweaked to fit most settings, as can optional rules. The Rifter® is a factory for alternative ideas.

The Rifter® Super-Subscription Offer is your chance to try The Rifter® at a discount price and get a FREE gift. Offer ENDS February 28, 2015.

Click here to see the full description for your subscription options and choice of free gift in the Palladium Online Store.

Robotech® RPG Tactics™ – Available now in the USA and Canada – coming to other parts of the world soon

You need to check out this exciting new game. Beautiful, detailed game pieces of your favorite Robotech® mecha, and fast playing rules that capture the Robotech® experience. And this is just the beginning. We have so much more planned. Available in game stores across the USA and Canada.

● Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Boxed Set (Main Box Game) – Cat. No. 55100 – $99.95 retail price. This is the game Robotech® fans have wanted for decades. Robotech® RPG Tactics™ is a fast-paced, tabletop combat game that captures the action and adventure of the Robotech® anime. Two or more players can engage in small squad skirmishes or scale up to massive battles. Relive the clashes of the First Robotech War, engage in stand-alone tactical games, or use the dynamic game pieces to enhance your Robotech® RPG experience. Or simply collect your favorite mecha from an expanding range of top-notch game pieces.

The First Six Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Expansion Packs are available to retail along with the main box game. Here are the SKUs and retail prices.

● Battle Foam Robotech® RPG Tactics™ bag/carrying case – Cat. No. 55107 – $120.00 retail (limited supply). Note: We only have about 50 Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Battle Foam bags available. Once they are sold out it will be months before we manufacture more, if ever.

● Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Rulebook – Cat. No. 55105 – $20.00 retail. Note: This is the same rulebook that is included in the main game box, and is offered separately for those who want an extra copy, or want to check out the rules before buying the whole game.

NEW! The Rifter® #69 – February

Every issue of The Rifter® is an idea factory for players and Game Masters to generate new ideas and find new avenues of adventure. It provides useful, ready to go source material you can just drop into your ongoing games. A doorway to new possibilities and numerous Palladium role-playing worlds. And the many new characters, O.C.C.s, powers, magic, weapons, villains, monsters, adventures and ideas for one setting can be easily adapted to any Palladium setting. Every issue has material for Rifts® and at least 2-3 other Palladium game lines. And don’t forget, most of the material can be easily adapted for use in ANY Palladium game setting.

With 2015 being the 25th Anniversary of Rifts®, every issue of The Rifter® will feature a Rifts® inspired cover and contain at least one Rifts® article.

Rise of Magic™ – Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook – February

The reason this book kept getting pushed back is that it is not a simple reprint. We had many corrections to make and the entire book has to be re-typeset and laid out like a new book. Art had to be found and scanned. Well, we will have it to the printer soon and in your hands by the end of January or early February.

The return of magic has empowered humans with strange and wondrous powers unlike anything quite yet seen (and different from most conventional types of magic). This only complicates things for Earth’s defenders as the line of distinction between “good guys” and “bad guys” begins to blur.

Bizantium and the Northern Islands™ will not be ready to ship until February. The writing has been a little rougher than I expected, but really I have been pulled away to handle a great many other things. I continue to clear my plate and expect to give it the majority of my attention over the next two weeks. All the artwork is in, and looks fantastic.

Journey to the Island Kingdom of Bizantium, situated at the far northern peak of the Palladium World. Its vast fleets of merchant vessels and warships travel the high seas and bring untold wealth back to the kingdom, as well as exotic goods, people, customs, weapons and foreign magic. As foreign powers exert their influence on the throne, treachery and potential power grabs lurk in the shadows.

New Waterchanter O.C.C. and 20+ magic spells new to the Fantasy setting.

New Sea Serpents and the warrior sailors who hunt them.

Sea Serpent generation table to create your own sea monsters.

New animals of the North Sea and Sea of Despair.

Sea Serpent ships! Dead serpents turned into deadly, massive attack ships (as depicted on the cover). And the forgotten race who creates these ships and threatens sailors in the Northern seas.

New O.C.C.s including the Serpent Chaser and Bizantium Marine.

New weapons and equipment for sailors, mariners, soldiers and adventurers at large.

New Bizantium ships including the Bireme, Ice Breaker and Battleship.

Full time-line of the history of Bizantium.

Bizantian society, culture, religion and magic.

The Eoten of the Northern Islands, their mythology and influence.

The Northern Islands described in full, cities and geography, as well as threats to sailors in the North Sea and Sea of Despair.

Bizantium’s many shipyards, possibly the kingdom’s greatest asset.

Key figures of Bizantium and political intrigue.

The Noble Houses, Warlocks and foreign powers all trying to capture the throne of Bizantium for themselves!

Written by Glen Evans. Additional text by Matthew Clements and Kevin Siembieda.

Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines Sourcebook One

Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines sourcebook is set in space with the UEEF (United Earth Expeditionary Force) led by Admiral Rick Hunter. This valiant force of mecha-clad heroes travel across the galaxy liberating planets from the bondage of the Invid Regent, the Robotech Masters and other tyrants and monsters.

Rifts® Sourcebook – The Coalition States: Heroes of Humanity

The events unfolding in World Book 35: Megaverse® in Flames threaten to change the entire landscape of Rifts® Earth, as the demonic minions of Hades and Dyval seek to bring Hell on Earth and turn the planet into a dimensional gateway to Armageddon!

The Coalition States, along with Northern Gun and Lazlo, take the lead in the defense of North America. Heroes of Humanity explores the good and bad in the Coalition’s efforts to save humanity and send this new threat back to the pits of Hell.

New Coalition weapons, armor and war machines.

The Coalition States: Are they heroes or villains? Or does it depend on whether you are human or not?

Can the CS fight alongside mages and D-Bees if it means saving the world?

Rifts® Secrets of the Coalition States: The Disavowed

“Desperate times require desperate measures. War has nothing to do with morality or justice. It’s all about winning or dying. We cannot bind our hands with high ideals, even our own, or worry about the laws of renegade nations or the rights of alien people. We must fight fire with fire. And you are the match.” – Colonel Lyboc addressing a Disavowed team

The Disavowed are so Top Secret that their existence is known only to a handful of the Coalition States’ most elite, top echelon, with Joseph Prosek II the mastermind behind the Disavowed operation, and Colonel Lyboc its shadowy face. Find out who these men and women are. How the Disavowed get away with using magic, traveling to other parts of Rifts Earth and even to other dimensions in pursuit of enemies and strategic information that cannot be had through conventional means. Learn about the secret parameters in which these hard-boiled warriors, secretly hand-picked by Joseph Prosek II, operate, why almost every mission is considered a suicide mission, and why they must forever be the Disavowed.

CS operatives so secret that even the top military and political leaders right up to Emperor Prosek know nothing about them. And if they did know, would they condone their activity or condemn it?

Are the Disavowed heroes or renegades? Assassins or soldiers? Madmen or super-patriots? Or a little of them all?

Unsung heroes who keep the CS safe, or thugs and pawns of a shadow agency within the Coalition government?

What role does the Vanguard play in this group?

How do they reward their D-Bee “teammates” when the mission is over?

What happens to the Disavowed when they have seen or learned too much? Adventure ideas galore and so much more.

Rifts® Secrets of the Atlanteans

True Atlanteans are descendants from Earth’s past. The survivors of the sinking of Atlantis (really a dimensional mishap) and travelers of the Megaverse, wielders of Tattoo Magic and other lost mystic arts. Most people regard them as heroes, but are they? The Sunaj Assassins are mythic villains feared by all, yet they too are True Atlanteans who serve dark forces.

For the first time, much of the story behind True Atlanteans and their secrets are revealed.

True Atlanteans revisited.

Optional Atlantean character creation tables including clan heritage and other factors.

Secrets of the stone pyramids, different types/purposes and powers.

Many new magic tattoos, magic spells, weapons and armor.

Atlantean hideouts and secret communities across the Megaverse.

The Sunaj Assassins, their secrets, history and plans for the future.

Atlantean Monster Hunter O.C.C., Atlantean Defender O.C.C. and much more. And this is just the tip of what this book contains.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook: First Responders

The Great Cataclysm has devastated civilization, but humanity fights for survival. The struggles of civilian law enforcement, fire and rescue, and everyday men and women are some of the most epic tales to be told in a world gone to hell. They fight monsters, aliens, the paranormal, the elements, and each other, all with the hope of reclaiming their lives from the Chaos.

Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook: Resurrection

In the shattered depths of Wisconsin, survivors are besieged by the dead come back to life. Zombies. But not just any type of zombie, zombies done Rifts-style. And unless the source of the zombie plague can be found and neutralized by NEMA defenders, North America may be overrun by the dead.

This was actually something Taylor White and I have been kicking around for years, even before we released the Dead Reign® RPG line. We think you’ll love it.

Something has animated the dead in Wisconsin. It is up to NEMA heroes to find the cause and stop it before it spreads beyond control.

Plus Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Wave One and Wave Two releases worldwide. And there are still some secret projects and licenses yet to be revealed.

PDF downloads from DriveThruRPG.com

This is a great resource for getting out of print Palladium titles and other select books. We’ve made 100 titles available as PDF digital downloads from DriveThruRPG.com, as well as Fantasy Paper Miniatures, Game Master resources and other good things with more to come. This is a great way to try Palladium products and get access to out of print RPG source material. Some notable titles include: